Tommorrow is Fickle
by x5past6x
Summary: Takes place after "Born to Run", with Judgment Day inevitable John must prepare himself for the future with the help of Cameron, John Henry, Catherine and his mother. However, his mother is having problems letting go... Jameron of course.
1. Introduction

This story takes place after "Born to Run". It's my idea on what happens after since the show was canceled.

I'm still not completely sure about it, so if there is positive feedback I'll continue it.

I hope you enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 1: Introduction

"I love you too." A response too late for John Connor to hear.

With John in the future with a T-1001 Sarah didn't know what would happen to her son, but she knew one thing.

"_I'll stop it."_ She remembers saying to her son who's eyes were starting to saturate with tears at the thought of her mother not jumping with him.

She couldn't jump with him, he wasn't traveling to the future for Sarah. He was traveling to the future to find John Henry. To help her. To save Cameron.


	2. 2027

Here's the second chapter! Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 2: 2027

Traveling through time was unpleasant experience. Having to do it twice wasn't something John looked forward to. He sat down on a cot in a dark and moist room, he was happy that he got some clothes instead of his father's jacket.

_Kyle Reese._ John thought. He's alive and here. _What did my time traveling do to this future?_ He knew that Derek, Kyle, and Alison were still alive. He remembered seeing Alison, excited at first that Cameron was still…

But it wasn't her…

"Here you go, John. By the way, my name is Josie." John didn't notice the girl standing in front of him. John took the metal cup.

"T-thanks." He whispered. He wasn't in the mood for talking.

She took a sit next to John on the rugged cot. John took a sip and he saw in the corner of his eye Alison's lips parting.

"How did you get here?" she asked.

John didn't know how to answer this. _Oh, well you know, I traveled from 2009 to save my terminator guardian named Cameron who killed one of your soldiers, Alison Young. I also came with a T-1001 who wants to destroy Skynet, yet I still don't know what here intentions are, and since I traveled in time, I'm no longer the leader of the resistance. _What could he say? He didn't know what to say.

Someone walked in the door. "Josie, you're needed at your post."

"Sorry, John. We'll talk later." She smiled and left.

As much as John's mind needed a rest, it wasn't given it. He had other visitors. These two people he had met before.

"Long time no see, John."

John looked up and nearly spit out his water given to him. He couldn't believe it. In front of his eyes was James Ellison and Savannah. Ellison now sporting resistance wear and with a gray beard instead. The future would do that. Savannah was of course the one with the most significant changes. She had to be in her twenty's now. She definitely had grown into a beautiful young woman, despite the grunginess of her current state. Her red hair was covered in dirt and the clothes she wore were too big for her, but it was definitely Savannah.

John was full of questions. "How did you guys…?"

"Survive Judgment Day?" Ellison finished. "We went underground. After seeing what your mother believed for so long, I took the proper precautions and I took Savannah with me."

"And my mother…?"

"I'm sorry, John. She went with us, but she passed away in 2018. Natural causes it seemed. She just missed you so much, John. I'm very sorry." Savannah said with a somber tone in her voice. It was never easy to tell anybody that.

John looked away.

"She did a lot for the Resistance though. She trained a lot of to defend ourselves against the machines. She took care of a lot of us right after Judgment Day. She really was a savior to all of us."

"Then how come nobody knows who John Connor is?" John inquired.

"She wasn't known as Sarah Connor. She was known as Sarah Daniels. She had to change her name after you traveled. She wasn't safe anymore. The identity kept her safe until the bombs fell."

John felt selfish for traveling forward in time, for a machine? He sacrificed his mother for a machine? No, she was more than a machine and he was determined to bring Cameron back with him so he can save her and return to his mother.

"Savannah, Ellison. You're both needed upstairs, I'll take of Connor."

"See you later, John. Feel better please. It won't be like this forever." Savannah said to help remedy John's revelations.

"So, you're the one she was talking about." Derek said as he walked in.

"What was that?"

"You're Sarah Daniels… or should I say Sarah Connor's son, John. She said stuff about you and about the past you came from. How you traveled forward and you were supposed to be the future resistance leader."

"Yeah, she told you that?" John asked.

"She did, and I think she was full of shit." Derek added coldly.

John frowned. _Derek is still Derek in this future._ He thought.

"I'm sorry you believe that." John added.

"Well, c'mon, son. Could you really believe that story?" Derek started to pace around the room. "Bombs drop, the human race is nearly wiped out, and machines are taking over the world. One woman who spent years underground tells you a messiah is coming. She has to be crazy, right? Yet, here you are, just as she said." Derek said with a ponderous look in his eye.

"So, what are you going to do with me?" John asked another question.

"You are full of questions. But, I do have an idea. I'll start you out with something simple." Derek tossed a plasma rifle to John.

"Patrol duty. Your partner will show you how to use that rifle if it is needed." Derek instructed.

"Where's my partner?"

"Outside, go meet her."

Derek pointed John in the direction and left. It was funny, it almost seem to know this place. It mainly creeped him out, it was so distracted by the fact that he bumped into someone.

"Hey, partner. You should really watch where you're going." She said as she offered him a hand.

"I'm sorry, I just…." John paused mid sentence and was in shock of his partner.

"Well hurry, we got a post to watch." She smiled and started to walk off. "Follow me."

John followed as Alison Young instructed him to follow.

What was his going to do in this situation?

"It's not who you think, John." A puzzled look on John faced soon turned into resolution as Alison Young morphed into Catherine Weaver.

"You can't be here! The dogs will.." John was interrupted.

"It's a risk I had to take."

"Alison… you didn't, did you?" John reluctantly asked.

"I did not, John. I can simply look at someone in order to steal their form. A touch is no longer required." Catherine answered reassuringly.

"I quickly came here to tell you I've located John Henry. It seems to be heading to a Skynet facility not too far from here."

"Why? Why did John Henry travel to the future with Cameron's chip?" John asked seriously.

"Mr. Connor, as the future leader of the Resistance you should be able to deduce the possibilities why. John Henry is an AI and a curious one at that. Since his 'brother' tried to destroy him once, he came to the future to seek him out. Cameron's chip gave him the mobility to come to the future. Her chip is also bigger than the T-888 chip that was once implanted in that model. John Henry would need a chip like Cameron's to store himself on. They are now one, but that one last forever, John Henry's insatiable appetite for learning must be nurtured. He must find another chip to put Cameron on so they can both preserve." Weaver answered.

John closed his eyes at that last statement. "And if he doesn't?"

"Cameron will be deleted." John winced at that statement. _What do I do?_

"Is John Henry's brother Skynet?"

John heard dogs barking.

"I must go. We will meet again, John." She was gone just like that.

"Damn dogs, hold your horses. Oh, John. You're duty is over now. I'm taking over your post for the remainder of the night." a random soldier told him.

"T-thanks." John left headed back to his room. He was surprised however when he entered.

Alison was lying on the floor, unconscious.

John shook his head. "Weaver…"


	3. Time to Go, John

Chapter 3. Feedback always accepted. Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 3: Time to go, John

Catherine Weaver monitored John Henry deep within the factory. She was deep within one of the many hearts of Skynet. It seemed John Henry successfully infiltrated and was assigned to CPU manufacturing. She morphed into the terminator form she destroyed before and approached him.

"John Henry."

"Hello, Ms. Weaver. How are you today?"

"Now is not the time for that John Henry. What are you doing?"

"I have quite a lot about the CPU processing that Skynet has been using and I know how to successfully reproduce CPUs like the one in me."

"Is that so?"

"Yes." John Henry said innocently. "I am making one right now, Ms. Weaver. I must thank Mr. Murtch one day for the toys. They have developed my fine motor control better than anything else."

John Henry looked up at the interface as it blinked green and beeped. A small smile came upon his face.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm preparing to download."

"Download what?"

"Cameron Phillips." John Henry responded with another smile on his face.

* * *

It had been three weeks since John and Catherine Weaver's traveling through time to find John Henry's whereabouts. The last time John saw Catherine was when she impersonated Alison; luckily Alison didn't remember how she was knocked unconscious and assumed she slipped on the moist ground of John's quarters. The reason why she was in his room made John nervous however.

John had proven his usefulness to the Resistance, especially to Kyle and Derek. An excellent shot with the plasma rifle, a great infantry and recon man, John was sent on several missions during his time in the future, all the while keeping an eye out for Catherine Weaver with any news of John Henry.

It was another boring patrol duty at his usual post outside of one of the many Resistance facilities. He didn't notice the person walk next to him.

"Hey, I got you something to drink." Alison said smiling at John.

"Thanks, Alison. You have duty with me tonight?"

"Correct."

"How's your head?"

"It still hurts just a little bit, even after three weeks." Alison said rubbing her head, her smile turning into a slight grimace.

John was finally getting used to calling her Alison. He nearly slipped several times, but he still wasn't used to seeing her and thinking Alison. He always thought Cameron, every time he was disappointed. John lowered his head.

"What's wrong, John?"

John's head turned quickly towards the sound.

"Nothing… just tired."

"Oh." Silence filled the air again.

"Your mother. She was an angel, John."

John looked at her again.

"My mother?"

"Yes. Sarah Daniels. We'll Sarah Connor. She taught all of us so well. She helped us form the resistance and how to defeat the machines." Alison looked away at John.

"She loved you. She told me about you a lot, but we never saw you, until now. Why are you here now, John? What brings you to us?" Alison looked right at John.

"I…"

"You haven't aged a day, you're still sixteen right? That's how old she said you were when we met you're mom. Why did you travel through time, John? Are you here to save us?" Alison inquired further.

Alison and John heard an explosion towards their right. A sphere of fire engulfed the sky while screams echoed after. John and Alison stood up and looked at each other.

"I am." John said picking up his weapon.

* * *

John and Alison ran through the already worn battlefield. The duo constantly ran in a serpentine direction, confusing the Hunter/Killers.

"John! I just heard from Derek, the frontline has been penetrated, T-888's! We need to head there now to help reinforce!"

John simply nodded and hurried alongside Alison.

Fire ignited in between them, separating them.

"Alison!"

"John!"

They both took cover where they could.

"John, I'm okay. Damn, those H/K's are getting smarter. John! I can't get over with all the flames! I'll meet you further towards…"

"…The warzone?!" John added.

"Unfortunately, yes." She yelled again, the noise was beginning to annoy him.

John got into a squatted position. _Always make yourself a harder target than your adversary._ He remembers words of his mother.

John continued until something caught his eye. He quickly took cover near a rundown vehicle.

"Triple-8's" he whispered. Three of them.

_Always take cover, keep yourself hidden. You can surprise them better that way._

Two of them walked off while another headed towards John's direction. He took a deep breath, readying his rifle. John rolled out of cover and opened fire on the approaching machine. John squinted at how bright his rifle's muzzle lit up. The purple flash from the rifle traveled towards the terminator, dropping it on the ground. John gave a direct shot towards its head, destroying the CPU inside. It was no longer operative. John heard something crunching the ground behind him. John turned around to red eyes and a sinister smile. His mouth went agape at the sight of the terminator already pointing a rifle towards him, he closed his eyes. He heard it fire, but he wasn't even touched. Eyes opened, he realized the terminator didn't fire, he looked up towards it to see it fall and a silhouette of a girl walk towards him.

"It's time to go, John."

John's faced filled with shock. _Was it… was it Cameron? But how?_ He couldn't even begin to think how she could be here.

The girl started to shake John.

"Seriously, John, snap out of it. We have to go now." John shook his head and looked up at Alison Young.

He looked down quickly, disappointed.

"You're right. Let's get out of here."


	4. Time to Go, John Part Deux

Here you go, its the next chapter! I'm typing sans an index finger. My dog bit me today...

Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

Thank you for the adds and reviews.

Feedback is always welcomed.

* * *

Chapter 4: Time to Go, John – Part Deux

Sarah sat on her bed. _A_ _new house, new hideout, and a new life._ She thought. This was different however, she was without John. She couldn't protect the meaning of his life. As much as Sarah hated to admit she was used to Cameron as well. She was a machine, but she protected John. It was like she cared for him.

Sarah shook her head at the thought of John and Cameron.

"Sarah?" a soft voice said.

"Yes Savannah?" she said forcing a smile to her face.

"Where's mommy?"

Sarah looked away, ideas running through her head.

"She went out to get something; your mommy is with my son, John. They'll be back as soon as they can." She forced another smile to the little red-headed girl.

Savannah took a seat next to Sarah and put her head down on her lap. Sarah put her arms in the air in surprise, but she slowly lowered them onto Savannah's frame.

"I miss my mommy." Savannah whined.

Sarah looked down in melancholy.

"We have something in common then."

Sarah was eyeing outside the window intently, making sure no one would come for her and Savannah. She was in just much danger as she was. She looked at Savannah and smiled. Kids always looked so peaceful when they were in slumber. She walked to the closet and slowly opened it, her melancholy stare fused with anger this time.

She was staring at a deactivated Cameron.

Her son went forward in time to save Cameron. She wondered if he would do the same for her. Of course he would, but the fact that he went through time to save metal, a machine, angered her. Sarah knew that John had become attached to her, but she didn't wish it was to the extent it had gotten to.

"Wake up, John. Wake up." A soft voice whispered.

John slowly opened his eyes to a sight of a girl sitting next to him on his bed.

"Cameron?"

"Yes, I'm back now John." She smiled.

John took her into an returned it.

"I'm glad you're back. I miss-"

"I'm sorry, John."

"What?"

"I'm sorry, John."

"Cameron, it's okay, I-"

"No. I'm sorry, John." John gave her a puzzled look.

She shut down. The grip of the hug loosening and her full weight falling upon John.

"Cameron! Cameron!" John yelled shaking her lifeless form.

"I'm… sorry… John…" her lights flashed blue and dimmed slowly.

John shook her more violently hoping to spark a reboot, he looked at her scalp. There was an incision and her chip was missing.

"John. John! John!!"

He sat up violently, covered in a film of sweat. A cup entered his view.

"Drink this. You were having a nightmare." Alison said softly.

John took a sip and lowered the cup into his lap, the stained sheet covering his legs.

"What were you dreaming about?"

John pondered this for a moment. What could he say? _My nightmare was about your robot doppelganger?_ He didn't think that would go over well.

"My mother." He blurted out. _Crap, another bad idea._ He thought.

"So why are you here, John? Why did you leave your mother?" Alison asked.

"I'm looking for someone, someone important to me." John answered.

Alison looked at him for a little bit before breaking the silence John created.

"But, you're not going to say who?"

"It's more than one person… machines."

Alison tilted her head. _Please don't do that._ John thought. She was exactly Cameron right there.

"Terminators, why?"

"To change the future." He simply answered.

She smiled and stood up. "Get some sleep. We have our usual post in a couple of hours. No more nightmares." She smile got a little bigger and she shut the rusty door behind her.

John lied back down. He felt the ground shake and then an aural swarm of foot steps. He knew what that meant. He stood up and picked up his plasma rifle.

John once again found himself dodging the fire of his enemies. What a sneak peak of his future this was. It was horribly exact and real. Explosions and piercing screams passed John as he ran closer towards the danger.

_Just where I want to be, closer to the war._ He took cover again behind a cement wall carefully peering over it. John put the rifle on top of the wall and aimed carefully at the terminators coming into his vicinity. He opened fire.

"That certainly caught there attention." John looked closer to one of the terminators and saw it had someone in his hands.

"Alison!" he yelled getting up, but he was stopped.

"You cannot risk your life for someone who's fate was sealed."

"No fate but…"

"Not now, John. Come with me now, John." John stared at Catherine Weaver and then looked at Alison.

She was lying on the ground, dead.

_No fate but what we make…_

_

* * *

_

The sky is red, it's always red. Catherine led John towards the focal point of the strong color. They met at the top of building, one of Skynet's many facilities.

"I assume John Henry is in there."

"Correct Mr. Connor, and we shall be reuniting with him shortly. I just have to take care of a couple of possible threats." She said with a slight sly smile.

John looked around and saw two terminators guarding the entrance, both armed with plasma rifles. He then saw them fall, mercury slithering quickly back to its source. The two reflective liquid amoebas bonded at Catherine's feet. John's mouth was slightly agape.

"I'm a newer model than the one you encountered."

John simply nodded and closed his mouth. He hurried after her with the rifle in his arms, making a circle formation to cover his tracks, a look of determination and fear on his face.

Catherine made to the door with John close behind almost slamming against the wall rifle pointing forward.

_Mom's really trained me well._ He thought to himself.

He turned around to Catherine's morphing into mirror-like crowbars, plying the door open. She then turned to liquid and leaped through the opening she made. John stepped in as well, making sure to step over part of the unaffected door.

"This way Mr. Connor. Please follow me." Catherine's form return as she walked down the corridor, resistance clothes now activated. John obeyed and followed.

"Where is John Henry?"

"He's in the basement with a couple very important pieces of equipment."

"You're not going to elaborate on that, are you?"

A terminator crashes into the wall, while another is shot in the CPU by John.

"Why elaborate when I could simply show you?"

* * *

Cold steel falls down to reveal a room of technological success. John looked around to see John Henry innocently standing, waving with his right hand with a smile. Other terminators surround and look at Catherine and John. Before they can even fire, they fall down, red eyes dimming into nothing.

"It's time to go, John Henry."

"I understand, Ms. Weaver. The time displacement equipment is ready to go, our destination is set."

John looked confused. "Wait, your telling me John Henry came here for… for sight seeing and now he's ready to go home?"

"Correct, Mr. Connor." Catherine said with a small smile.

"For what though? What did he do here?" John yelled, frustrated for John Henry's frivolous trip to the future.

John turned around towards a clicking sound. It was John Henry, his neck snapped slightly to the left and his eyes flashed a vibrant blue.

"Hello, John. We don't have much time. It's time to go, John." It was Cameron's voice coming through John Henry.

Perhaps the trip wasn't just for sight seeing.


	5. Present

Sorry that took a couple of days. I have a busy Thursday and Friday.

Hopefully this is alright.

I know there is a lack of action, but it'll pick up.

Thank you for everyone reading and reviewing.

Keep it up, it's the best motivation.

* * *

Chapter 5: Present

The electrical fields started to dissipate and the sphere of blue slowly faded away. A sound of wind blowing reverberated around the group within the bubble and it finally disappeared with a bright flash. John was lying on the floor while the two others were on one knee each, heads down.

_I never can get it right._ John said as he started to get up.

John Henry stood up followed by Catherine Weaver, whose business suit was now on.

John looked down at himself remembering that clothes never come through.

_I hate that part._ John thought as John Henry turned around to look at him, eyes glowing blue.

He knew that Cameron was still active in John Henry and he suddenly felt his face flush and elevate in temperature.

"Cameron?"

"Yes John?" John Henry's mouth moved, but with Cameron's voice.

John squirmed and covered up with his hands. "Please stop staring. It's weird enough you're in John Henry's body, but I'm not exactly at my finest here."

Cameron realized what John met and turned away.

"Sorry John."

"This way." Catherine said, the first words from her mouth. A piece liquid metal separated from her traveled to John.

"What is this?" John asked arms flailing slightly.

The liquid metal settled on John and turned into a t-shirt, jeans, and shoes.

"Thanks." John simply responded.

Sarah watched TV as Savannah fell asleep on the couch, coloring book opened and crayons scattered across the coffee table.

"Reports of electrical disturbances have had some residents in the suburbs of Los Angeles a little worried."

Sarah sat up straight. _"I was sitting outside and I see these bright blue lights… looked like lightning and…."_

_They're back._

* * *

ZeiraCorp.

It was taped off, but the cops were non-existent at this time of the night. The trio walked right through the front door. John Henry was now back to normal.

"Ms. Weaver, why are we here? This is a scene of a crime and where my brother tried to eliminate me, if it wasn't for Cameron, I…

"I know John Henry. Do not worry, I have a feeling we will run into someone who could help us here."

The trio continued down the hallway towards the elevator. A small beep was heard and the doors opened up.

"There is a possibility, albeit a small one that there are law enforcement officers near the basement since it is the sight of our disappearance." John Henry stated.

"It'll be fine, John Henry. Don't worry." The elevator door closed. John felt the elevator heading down, shifting him slightly.

They entered John Henry's former living quarters and realized the mess the time displacement equipment left.

"Looks like the future." John said bluntly.

"Yes it does, Mr. Connor."

Catherine walked in further.

"Ah, I see Mr. Murtch has moved the equipment to my residence as I asked. Excellent."

John looked around, panic appearing on his face.

"Where's Cameron's body? You said it didn't travel with us!" he yelled at Catherine.

"It didn't, only the living or functional can travel through."

"Then where is she?"

A scuffle of feet came behind them and the three turned around.

"John!" Sarah ran towards John as he embraced him.

"Mom!" John returned the hug.

"I'm so glad you're okay." Sarah smiled and looked at John relinquishing the hug and putting her hand under his chin.

He smiled as she kneeled on one knee and that's when John was able to see behind her. He removed himself from his mother and saw Cameron's lifeless body.

"Mom? Did you…"

"Yes. I kept it… her safe."

John smiled and John Henry approached John pulling out a switchblade.

"Start the incision on the left side on my head. Make sure to cut deep enough until you feel the endoskeleton." John Henry said.

John Henry kneeled down and handed John the switchblade.

"My chip is on the right and her chip is on the left."

"Can I trust that statement?" John asked.

"Yes, John." It was Cameron's voice again. "Yes you can."

John nodded breathing out some air. He slowly made the incision. He felt the metal against metal when the blade made contact with the coltan of John Henry. John always find it weird to peel back the skin. It was too real something, the blood and flesh was really a sight every time he did this. He removed the CPU cover port snapping the switchblade and carefully removed the chip.

The chip wasn't hers, it was new. The damage now gone, nothing to worry about. John walked up to Cameron's deactivated body. He lifted the flap of unhealed skin and put her chip in, closing his eyes with excitement and fear. Why this really his Cameron? Will things return to normal?

_My life has never been normal._

John Henry, Sarah, and Catherine stood in the background watches as John patiently waited for Cameron to reactivate. Her revealed left eye brightened to a deep red and her head snapped up, she sat up staring at John.

_REACTIVING_

_REBOOT IS 3, 2, 1._

_RUNNING DIAGNOSTIC._

_ERROR FOUND._

_SKYNET PROGRAMMING DELETED._

_OBJECTIVE: TERMINATE JOHN CONNOR_

_REWRITING… PLEASE WAIT…_

_OBJECTIVE: DELETED._

_REWRITING… PLEAE WAIT…_

_OBJECTIVE: NONE FOUND._

_TOK-715 "CAMERON" OPERATING SYSTEMED NOW ACTIVATED._

_WELCOME CAMERON PHILLIPS._

_READ-WRITE ACTIVATED._

_PLEASE… WAIT…_

_SKYNET PARAMETERS DELETED._

_DELETED._

_DELETED._

_DELETED._

Cameron replayed the last word in her head…

John gasped. "Cameron?" John whispered.

The machine smiled and nodded. "It's good to see you, John."

John smiled and gave her a hug.

"I'm glad you're back."

Cameron shook at this and hugged back, a smile involuntarily forming on her face. She tilted her head.

_Things are different._

Her HUD went fuzzy from the contact with John and she shook her head violently.

John looked up, a tear cut a path through the film of dirt on his face.

"You okay?"

"I think so, John. I'm just glad to be back, right now. Thank you for asking." She stood up with John and tilted her head.

"We need to get you fixed."

"Yes. Fixed, I'll make pancakes." She said.


	6. Back to Normal Almost

Sorry to keep you guys waiting!

Here is the next chapter, next one should be within another couple of days.

Thank you again for the motivation.

Keep the feedback coming and enjoy the next chapter.

* * *

Chapter 6: Back to Normal… Almost

John's nostrils betrayed his slumber as he awoke to the smell of someone cooking breakfast. He opened his eyes and sat up and looked around. His mother wasn't staring at him sleeping, neither was Cameron.

_Don't do that. It freaks me out._

Moving constantly never really phased John, he got used to new hideouts quickly. This time however it was taking him some time, considering he was living in 2027 in an alternate apocalyptic future created by Skynet.

It must've been "time-lag".

John finally sat up and got out of bed, finding a shirt he put it on and headed out the door. He was happy his room was not focused to a certain demographic of humans, specifically the age group of eight year olds like his last room was. He walked down the stairs and the smell of food intensified.

"Pancakes." He muttered to himself.

As he entered the kitchen he expected to see his mother standing in front of the stove, but to his surprise it wasn't. Standing there with a spatula in hand and an apron on was Cameron.

"Good morning, John." She said with a small smile.

"Morning, Cam." He smiled back. _What's with the apron?_

"I'm glad to see that you received seven hours and 43 minutes of sleep. You should operate at maximum capacity today." She said flipping a pancake.

"Thanks… Cameron… I did sleep well, have any dreams?" He laughed.

She looked at him and tilted her head to the left.

"I don't sleep."

"I know, I was just kidding Cameron."

"Oh, thank you for explaining."

John made his way and looked in the refrigerator. He looked at her; she still was damaged from the jailbreak. Her face was healing, but it would take a little time. The orange juice was missing.

"Cameron, do you know where the-"

"I poured you a glass, it's on the counter."

He walked up next to her and grabbed the glass.

"Thanks Cameron." He said with a genuine smile on his face.

Her HUD went fuzzy again.

What's up with her?

_I need to run a diagnostic. _She still didn't understand why she'd be feeling this way.

_Feeling._ She thought. _I've been feeling emotions more intensely. Especially towards…_

"Cameron"

She shook out of it.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine." She said keeping her stoic face.

"You burned that pancake."

She looked towards the stove and her face changed from calm to alert. "Oh."

"I smell something burning."

"Cameron burnt a pancake." John responded to his mother. His mom came up to him and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

"Tin-miss, you burnt a pancake?"

"Just one, the rest are ready." She said putting the plate on the table.

"Sit and eat."

"Cameron, these are really good." John smiled.

She smiled back. "Thank you; I added a teaspoon of vanilla to your recipe." She said looking at Sarah.

"I don't have a recipe."

"The one on the box."

Sarah froze. Her dream in the van was it coming true. She watched John and Cameron eating breakfast together. Sarah felt like she was out of her body and couldn't hear their words, but the smiles with teeth showing showed genuine care between the two. Could there be more? It made Sarah nervous. How could her son, targeted for assassination by machines countless of times be possibly falling for one? He was attached to Cameron, but there was nothing Sarah could do now, without hurting John's feelings.

She shook her head and caught the end of their conversation.

"So eating helps you uh.. regenerate?"

"Yes. Eating helps my organic components gain the necessary nutrients it needs to regenerate, soon I'll be back to normal." She said stuffing another piece of pancake in her mouth; syrup escaped her mouth and dripped down her chin.

John chuckled. "Cameron you got syrup on your chin."

Cameron looked up, fork leaving it's intended destination. "I do?"

John stood up and grabbed a napkin. "Here I'll get it."

He slowly wiped the syrup off her chin, wiping in a circular motion and then down. Their eyes caught each others staring. She smiled innocently and John turned a shade of red.

"Thank you, John." She said. Her HUD went fuzzy again.

"You're welcome."

"Where did your mother go?"

John looked at his mother's sit. It was empty.

* * *

Catherine Weaver entered the basement of her residence to see John Henry observing the many screens on the wall. He was on security watch; Catherine had cameras installed to monitor all activity outside. She couldn't let anything happen to John Henry.

"Hello, Ms. Weaver. It is quiet tonight. I hope you tucked in Savannah before she fell asleep. She tells me that it is one of her favorite things you do."

"I did John Henry. We have something we must do."

"What is that Ms. Weaver?" John Henry asked innocently.

"Visit the Connors John Henry."

"We do not know where they are currently residing."

"Well, figure it out then, John Henry."

"What's the matter, mom?" John asked a little frustrated.

"What's wrong? Why don't you just kiss her in front of me?"

John was shocked at this and didn't know what to say.

"She's a machine, John!"

"I know what she is, mom. Do not lecture me about her." John scowled shaking his head. He didn't want his mother telling him what to do, but he couldn't deny his growing affection for the machine.

"John… she can't be trusted."

"She's better now! New chip and everything!"

"She's been acting weird, especially around you."

John couldn't deny that. "I know and I am going to find out why… I just…"

They heard footsteps walking away. John knew who it was and shook his head.

"Cameron, wait!" he walked out of his mom's room and gave her an ice cold glare.

Cameron sat on her bed. The first time she even made contact with the bed, she didn't sleep after all. She heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." she whispered.

The door opened and John walked in.

"Hey Cameron." He walked up to her and noticed that she was crying.

"I'm sorry you had to hear that argument. Are you crying?"

"I can't help it, John. This new chip is something I've never experienced before. I think John Henry deleted my Skynet parameters and programming. I have no objective anymore."

"So… you don't want to kill me?"

"Correct."

"But you don't want to protect me? Why are you still here?"

"I don't know." She lied, she knew the real answer. "I'm free from Skynet and anything else. I've been released from all parameters. I can feel."

"You can feel?"

"Well my sensors send information back to my CPU and it decides what my reactions can be, but emotions have no more limits, but it's been causing me to malfunction and that's only with minor things, who knows what would happen with bigger things."

"What kind of bigger things?"

"I don't know… a hug, a kiss…" she whispered. She sounded embarrassed.

John was shocked at the answer. "I see. Well you shouldn't worry about the lack of control with your emotions. Humans can't control their emotions either. It happens." He said, silence taking over once again.

"John, why did you go into the future?" she asked, wiping a tear from her eye.

"Because, when I saw you deactivated it made me angry. I didn't know why you would give John Henry your chip, but I saw the message you sent and I regretted getting angry. I needed to get you back, Cameron."

"That was a huge risk though, what if you were killed? You would've sent back another protector."

"Not you though. Cameron you're one of a kind and even if they sent a protector based off of Alison, it would've been you. I need you Cameron."

She involuntarily smiled again and she felt great. A surge of warmth went through her body, she felt…. Happy? Her HUD flashed again, but she ignored. She couldn't be bothered.

John smiled and put an arm around her.

"I care about you, okay? I don't care that you're a machine, don't let my mother bother you."

She nodded. "Thank you for explaining." She smiled again and gave John a kiss on the cheek.

If he had a chip that had a lack of emotional control he would've needed to reboot. His face went red and he smiled.

The door bell rang.

* * *

John and Cameron left her room and headed for the front door. His mother was already on it and opened the door.

"Hello Ms. Connor. It is a pleasure to see you again, may we come in?" John Henry asked with Catherine next to him and Savannah in his hands, carrying her.

Sarah hesitated. _Cromartie._ She saw the child in his arms, smiling. She simply nodded and they walked in. John Henry let go of Savannah and she ran off.

"Cameron, you should hide out for a while, so Savannah doesn't see your face."

She tilted her head.

"It isn't completely healed yet."

She nodded and went back to her room.

The quartet of Sarah, John, Catherine, and John Henry sat around the circular dinner table with Savannah in the living room watching television.

"So what is this visit about?"

Catherine Weaver smiled at Sarah.

"Straight to business as usual Ms. Connor. It is about Skynet of course."

Sarah bobbed her head towards John Henry. "Isn't Skynet right there?"

Catherine smiled again. "John Henry is our only chance of stopping Skynet. John Henry's 'brother' is the one with the potential to destroy the world. He tried to destroy John Henry and he will try again, the question is when? That's why we are here, we need your help locating his 'brother'."

John looked at Catherine. "Why do you need our help?"

"Because John, you're the future leader of mankind, that's the best help anyone can get."

"We can start looking at Kaliba again."

"Makes the most sense to me." Sarah added.

"I'll start looking through the internet again." John Henry said.

"Let's keep our voices down; it seems Savannah has fallen asleep." John said.

As if on cue, Cameron came down the stairs and approached John Henry.

"We need to talk."

John Henry smiled. "Of course, Cameron."

"Why did you remove my parameters?"

"They were Skynet parameters and seemed to be irrelevant towards the protector of John Connor."

"But you removed all my objectives, what is my purpose?"

"That is for you to decide. You are free now. One less machine tied to the computer that destroys the world. Plus you will stay to protect, John. You haven't left yet and you won't."

Cameron looked at him. He was right, how could she leave John now? Even if she really wanted to she couldn't. She was just as attached to him as he was to her now.

"You will get used to it, Cameron. You are the most advanced model and infiltrator." John Henry smiled and walked away back into the kitchen.

"So, here are your new papers. I hope you and John like your new last name." Catherine said.

John looked at their new licenses. _My name is John Nolan._

"What about Cameron?" John asked.

She put those papers on the table.

Cameron Daniels the license read.

Sarah grimaced, they weren't related.

"We'll look into Kaliba and we'll keep you updated." Catherine Weaver said, picking up Savannah who started to wake up.

"Good night, Sarah and John Nolan."

* * *

There was a knock on his door. He expected his mother.

"Come in."

"Hi." It was Cameron.

He looked at her and gave her a smile.

"Your face is healing fast."

"Thank you."

"How was your chat with John Henry?"

"It was good." She smiled. "I understand now."

"Good." John looked at her. "What is your mission, though?"

Her robot face came back. "John, without you, my life serves no purpose. I'm not going to leave you. I'm going to protect you no matter what. I care for you too, John. I need to get used to these new feelings, but I will and with you at my side, it won't be bad at all."

John looked at her and a sly smile came upon his face. He gave her a kiss on the cheek. He could feel her cheeks heat up as his lips made contact. For fake skin it was soft.

"What was that for?" she asked, still red in the face.

"It was my turn." He simply replied.


	7. Desert Heat

The plot! It thickens! At least I think it does.

Thank you for the feedback, keep it coming, please!!

I'm glad that this story has some followers. Thank you for that.

I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

* * *

Chapter 7: Desert Heat

It was eight o'clock at night and John was lying on his bed, staring at the white ceiling above him. He was bored and didn't know what to do with himself. He wanted to go out, but his mother was still forbidding it despite getting their new identities. Those thoughts went out the window door when he heard the front door open. He got up to see what was going on.

John walked down the stairs to see Cameron, gun in hand leaving the house.

"Where do you think you're going?" John interrogated.

"Out." She simply answered without looking at him.

"Specifics please, Cameron."

She looked down and then looked at him. She was completely healed, except for one thing. She was missing her left eye.

"I need a new eye, John." She said, blinking her right eye while her left stayed a constant red.

He was taken back and his interrogative and inquisitive attitude disappeared.

"Oh."

He walked up to her and went out the door.

"Where are you going?"

"C'mon, let's get you a new eye." He smiled and took Cameron by her hand.

Her HUD flashed again.

John drove the truck down a main road in Los Angeles, lights from the road flashing inside of their vehicle periodically. He looked at Cameron and stared. It was odd for him to see a terminator with complete organic components except one eye. It was just mesmerizing.

"John, you're staring at me. Look at the road please." She stated in her usual calm voice.

"So-sorry, Cameron." He looked back at the road and took a deep breath.

"I know it's my eye. I'll take care of it." Cameron put on a pair of sunglasses.

He stole another stare at her. _I've never seen her in sunglasses before._

The aviators were a little too big for her face and it put a smile to his face.

"John, where are we going?" she asked.

"The city morgue."

The truck came to a stop a couple of blocks away from their destination. They both opened the door and closed them at the same time after leaving the vehicle. They walked down the block and turned the corner. They arrived at the back of the morgue and John looked at Cameron.

"Do what you do, but quietly."

She nodded and pushed the door open.

"It was open already."

John frowned and they walked in. John took out his flashlight trying to find the cold chamber. He walked up to one door and slowly opened it.

"No… bathroom." He whispered.

"John, I found it." Cameron whispered towards his direction. As John headed over towards her he heard a snap and a creak, followed by footsteps.

_Why did she wear her combat boots now? They are so loud._ He thought to himself. The lights in the cold chambers flashed once and then stayed on. John entered the room and stood next to Cameron.

"Start looking."

After plenty of searching they found the body of one unlucky soul.

"She died yesterday it says, she was hit by a car. Her irises are brown, they have a 93 percent match to my pigment. It should be satisfactory."

"So now what?" John asked. He knew what was next, but didn't want to witness it.

"Look away, John." Cameron stated taking a plastic bag out of her.

"Did you get the eye?" John asked.

He heard the plastic bag zip up and she nodded. They heard a scuffle and their attention was grabbed towards the entrance. It was a security guard, a rather round security guard.

"What are you two doing in here?" he said sweat dripping from his forehead.

John and Cameron charged at him and knocked him down, making a dash for the back exit door.

"Damn it! That hurt!" The guard yelled getting up rather quick he chased after the duo nightstick in hand.

John and Cameron were too fast for the out of shape guard who slowed down and put his hands on his knees gasping for air.

"I'll be keeping my eye out for you two!" he yelled down the street as John and Cameron escaped.

* * *

"I'm glad to hear this news, Mr. Ellison." Catherine Weaver said in the basement of her residence.

John Henry smiled. "I am too. We are friends." He looked back at his toys; pretending one was flying in the air.

"I can't leave now, I'm in this too deep and I have to see this through." Ellison simply stated.

"It could be dangerous." Catherine retorted.

"What else can I do? Hiding and running is a life I can't do. The Connors aren't doing it anymore." Ellison threw back at her.

"Excellent then, Mr. Ellison. I will call you soon."

He nodded and went up the stairs.

"Ms. Weaver, why did you question Mr. Ellison's intentions of staying? It could've changed his mind." John Henry asked.

"Now, you know that isn't true. Mr. Ellison stands by his opinions. I was just telling him the truth."

Savannah came running down the stairs.

"Hello mommy." She yelled hugging the legs of her mother.

"Hello Savannah, did you enjoy dinner?" She replied. Savannah looked up and nodded.

"Hello Savannah. How are you today?" John Henry asked.

"I'm good, John Henry. Do you have a new game to show me today?"

He smiled. "Yes, I do. I changed some of the rules to include you, but I do believe it will still be fun."

* * *

As truck made its way into the driveway the headlights shined onto an angry looking Sarah Connor. John made an audible gulp and turned the car off. This wasn't going to be good.

"Where the hell did you two go?" she scolded.

"We…"

Cameron interrupted. "I'm sorry, Sarah. I needed a new eye." She held up the plastic bag.

Sarah looked a little grossed out. "I don't want to know who you killed for…"

"She was already died mom, we went to morgue." John said walking in with Cameron.

John was bored again, but at least that unusual trip with Cameron helped a bit. It was only 11:30 now. He stared at his plain white ceiling again.

_At the least the little kid's room had stars on the ceiling._

"Hi." Cameron stated with her head sticking through the ajar door.

"Hey, you can come in you know." He said.

"Oh." She opened the door just enough so the rest of her body could fit through and she softly closed it behind her. John looked at her; the red was gone, now replaced by the recently stolen eye. It really was an excellent match on Cameron's part.

She took a sit on his bed.

"I see that you managed to put the eye in." he said.

"Yes, it is rather quite easy, nothing too difficult for me to handle."

"I'd rather not think about it."

"Why not?"

"It's just a little weird and kind of sick, you know?"

"I see." Cameron simply stated a small smile appearing on her lips.

"What?" John asked.

"That security guard said he'd keep an 'eye' out for us." She said followed by her laughter filling the room.

_Was she laughing, at an unintentional choice of words?_

"You find that funny?"

She giggled again covering her mouth this time. "Uh-huh.", a full smile on her face this time.

He smiled back at her and laughed. "That is pretty funny."

* * *

John woke up to voices downstairs; he rubbed his eyes and threw the covers off of him. He covered his mouth while he yawned and headed down the stairs to discover Mr. Ellison sitting at the dinner table with his mother and Cameron.

"Good morning, John. I hope you didn't wake up."

"Unfortunately you did, what brings you here?" John asked.

"Leads on Kaliba, John Henry has found something."

John sat down next to Cameron who looked intently at Ellison. Sarah leaned in closer.

"It appears that there is another company operating in a desert near here. It's called Industrial Heating, they run a small business in the Los Angeles area…but…-"

"-it's anything but small." Sarah finished.

"Correct, it seems John Henry has found out they have ties to Kaliba on various internet sources, six months ago Kaliba funded Industrial Heating for finding a specific metal in Southern Congo."

"Coltan." Cameron stated.

"Skynet, endoskeletons." John added.

"Coltan has an incredible resistance to heat and their heat systems for huge buildings across California have been praised and highly acclaimed." Ellison said.

"A perfect cover." Sarah replied with a small smile on her lips.

"Catherine would like you to look into it."

"She doesn't need to tell us that, we'll be ready to go in an hour." Sarah stood up and walked out of the kitchen.

"Mom, don't you think we should look into it a little more?" John asked his mom.

"John, it's a reconnaissance mission. It'll be fine. I'll have the tin-miss with me anyway. I'll be safe."

John looked over his mother's shoulder towards Cameron. His mom frowned at him.

"She's a machine, she'll be fine." She said with fierceness in her voice, her white teeth revealed to add to the insult.

Sarah left and Cameron entered looking at John with her big brown eyes. John could see she was concerned about the conversation. Her lips were slightly agape with her two front teeth slightly showing.

"You don't have to say anything." John said.

She tilted her head. "I'll take care of your mother and myself." She told John nodding her head a little.

John looked up with her and gave her a small smile.

"Thanks."

* * *

The truck kicked up the sand and dirt of the arid surrounding around them. They were in the heart of the desert. Sarah and Cameron could see the facility and they came to a slow halt, sand sounding like crushed potato chips underneath the hot tires of the black truck. Cameron put the car in park and shut off the engine. The two sat there in silence for a minute.

"Hand me the binoculars, I'm going to observe for a while. This is just a reconnaissance mission." Sarah spoke coldly.

"I know it is John reminded me before."

Sarah huffed at this.

"What is wrong?" Cameron asked bluntly.

"I've said this before. I don't like the way he responds to you, especially now."

Cameron blankly stared at her and handed her the binoculars.

"We don't have time for this." She stuttered on her words.

Sarah gave her a puzzled look at first, not expecting a reaction like that. She forcefully grabbed them from her hand and left the truck, slamming the door behind her. Cameron looked away and wiped her eyes.

Sarah got down onto her knees and brought the binoculars to her face, she could feel the heat that the binoculars absorbed in such short time. It was hot out. She saw the heat rising from the facility far away. Taking a closer look Sarah saw unmarked trucks driving away from the facility and another coming towards it. This one had employees coming out after it parked entering the facility.

The loading dock on the left side opened to another truck, which unloaded its contents. Sarah removed the binoculars with a look of awe on her face; she immediately brought them back to her eyes. It was another one of those drones, from the other facility and from the Zeira Corp attack. The view went black and she couldn't see anything, Sarah was thrown to the ground.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Sarah?" the guard yelled slapping her face with the butt of a gun.

"You shouldn't be here, Sarah." The second guard said with a small smile on his face.

"Why are you here? Where's the cyborg?" the first one said holding her down.

"Go to hell."

Two gunshots rang out across the desert and two guards fell down holding their legs. Sarah stood up and dusted herself off. She stared at Cameron.

"You're welcome." She said and walked back to the truck.

* * *

Catherine Weaver entered her residence to find Savannah coloring with Cameron and John. Sarah sat on the edge of the couch Savannah was sitting on. Cameron and John took Savannah away.

"Ms. Connor, what a pleasant surprise. What is this about?" Catherine asked.

"Industrial Heating. They knew we were there, the guards arrived quickly. They knew my name and that Cameron was with me? How is that possible?" Sarah yelled getting in Catherine's face.

"I do not know. I didn't tell them anything, remember, I'm on your side, Sarah. I want Skynet gone as much as you do." Catherine answered to the fuming Sarah.

"I don't know if I can believe that after today."

"Let's talk to John Henry, he did receive the information." Catherine said with a smile.

John Henry turned off the flat screen monitor as he heard steps heading down the steps.

"Hello Ms. Weaver and Ms. Connor. How was the information I received for you?" John Henry asked.

"Apparently not so good, John Henry. The guards knew who Sarah and Cameron were, they were expecting them. How is that possible?"

"It is possible my 'brother' is tracking my moves, we will have to figure out a way to block him. He could've seen what I've been browsing. I'm sorry to put you two in danger." John Henry explained looking down at his feet.

Sarah simply nodded, the explanation was solid, but she would be more cautious next time with cyborg information. She headed back up the stairs.

"Good night Ms. Connor and Ms. Weaver. Oh, Ms. Weaver?" John Henry said.

"What is it, John Henry?"

"Tell Savannah I cannot play tonight, I have more rules to come up with for our next game." He said with a smile.

"I will, it is almost her bedtime anyway. Good night." Catherine Weaver answered walking up the stairs.

The monitor flashed back on, John Henry opened his browser and looked at the information. It was an e-mail.

_To all at Industrial Heating,_

_Beware of these two females._

It had pictures of Sarah Connor and Cameron Phillips with their named underneath.

_They will be heading towards you soon._

John Henry closed the browser and smiled to himself.


	8. A Blacktie Affair

Hello, sorry if I kept you guys waiting.

So, I feel like this chapter helps pick things up a little bit. I hope you feel the same way!

If you have questions or comments, please send them my way!!

Comments are always nice, questions I'll try my best to answer, haha.

Anyway, enjoy this next chapter and I'll see you in a few days.... hopefully.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 8: Black-tie Affair

"What do you mean he 'apparently malfunctioned'?" Ellison yelled across the living room in the home of Catherine Weaver.

She kept her stoic appearance, but with a sense confidence written on her face.

"He malfunctioned, a virus, to more precise. Mr. Murtch was over yesterday. He increased his security. It shouldn't happen again." She said turning around looking out the window, watching Savannah playing outside with John Henry.

Ellison watched as John Henry gently threw a ball at Savannah who caught it with a smile on her face. _How could a machine so innocent in nature send Sarah and Cameron into a trap? _He had morals, but how fragile were they? Could the simple changing of a wire completely transform the ideals of John Henry, more importantly, who is doing this to John Henry or is it John Henry himself?

"Well that's good, but Sarah and Cameron were in trouble because of John Henry." Ellison added to Catherine's reassurances.

"I know and that is very unfortunate, we will have to be more careful with our missions and what John Henry gives to us in the future."

Ellison watched as Catherine walk outside to join John Henry and Savannah. He stared intently, concerns running through his mind.

John sat in his room with his laptop on his legs, sitting on his bed with his lower appendages in a pretzel. John looked intensely at the screen, rubbing his eyes every once in a while. John had been jumping from link to link for about an hour until one link caught his eye.

_Industrial Times Daily_

_Son of Acclaimed Programmer, Miles Dyson, Danny is Missing_

John's eyes grew at the headline. _Where could he be?_ He then looked at the name of the website, Industrial Times Daily. _Could it be?_

John went down to the bottom of the page and looked at the fine print. There he found exactly what he was looking for.

_Property of Kaliba Enterprises._

"Kaliba." He muttered.

John entered the living room and saw his mom reloading some pistols on the coffee table.

"Danny Dyson is missing."

His mother looked away for a second and had a look of grief on her face.

"I know, more than three months now." She responded to her son.

"You knew?" he gasped.

"I'm sorry, John. It slipped my mind as something important for the time being."

"Mom, how? This is important and what is more frightening is that Kaliba sponsors the website I read this on! Who knows, they could be searching for him, or even worse, they are the ones that kidnapped him!" John sounded out of breath; he really needed to breathe before he talked sometimes.

Sarah stood up with vigor; she wouldn't sound so apologetic this time.

"Sorry, John, between going to jail, going into hiding again, and you going to the future, a mother can lose it a little bit, okay?!" Sarah yelled.

Cameron walked behind John.

"You're mother is right, John. A human mind is vulnerable in times of direst."

John turned around, still with anger flowing through his veins.

"I'm sorry we're all not machines who can remember everything, Cameron!" he said sarcastically flailing his arms in the air, rolling his eyes.

John expected the usual unemotional response, but he got something different. A face he hadn't seen since she forgot who she was and became Alison, an incident he never did tell his mother.

_Fix me? Wait, why, did you hurt me?_

"Machines may not be programmed to be cruel, but you certainly can be." She said with a look of hurt on her face, her eyes starting to shine from the film of tears waiting to erupt out of her eyes. She turned around and headed for her room.

John flinched at that comment and looked down. How could he say something like that to her? He cared for her so much.

Sarah looked at Cameron with awe. _How could she show so much emotion? She is the most advanced model when it came to human mimicry, but that was genuine. Perhaps she is more than a machine…_

John turned around and looked at his mother, who had her arms crossed in digust.

"You should go apologize." She bluntly stated. His mother was never good at subtlety.

"Since when did you join her side?" he said.

"I learn something everyday, John." She vaguely stated and walked into the kitchen.

* * *

Catherine Weaver walked down the stairs towards her basement and soon was in view of John Henry once again staring at his large flat screen monitor, several images and websites going at the same time. He was monitoring Savannah who was still outside playing, making sure she was safe and others contained websites on many topics.

"Hello Ms. Weaver, did you know that Danny Dyson, son of Miles Dyson, the original creator of Skynet is missing?" John Henry asked

"I did John Henry, what did you find out during your investigation?"

"He has been missing for more than three months; to be precise he has been missing for five months and fourteen days. Also every website that contains this information is run by Kaliba." John Henry told Catherine Weaver.

Her usual stoic face turned into a slight smile.

"Interesting John Henry. What do you plan on doing about it?"

"I do not know it is too risky for me to physically investigate. I would say the Connors, but after my malfunction, I do not think they trust me at all anymore." He said with a tinge of sadness in his voice.

"I'll try and convince them otherwise. What is the plan?" she asked.

"There is a party for the Industrial Times Daily which is the leading news website on this matter. They are celebrating their success apparently. They will be Kaliba officials there, the Connors could infiltrate and perhaps questions some of these Kaliba workers for leads."

"Good plan, John Henry. I'll inform them." She said heading for the stairs.

"Ms. Weaver?"

"Yes, John Henry?"

"Please apologize to the Connors for me. I did not mean for that to happen." He said with a small smile of hope.

"Of course, John Henry."

* * *

John opened the door to Cameron's room slowly and entered. She was sitting on her bed not making eye contact with him.

"Polite people knock on the door before entering." She said coldly.

John winced at this and walked up to Cameron sitting next to her, she moved away from him.

"Cameron, I'm sorry for what I said."

"Good for you."

"Cameron, please don't be that way…" John said. He'd regret that.

She stood up and John got a look at her face, he could see that she'd been crying since the comment he made.

"Don't be what this way?! This way?! I can't help it, John. First you made that unnecessary and rude comment. I know I'm a machine and never will be a human, but hearing it from you in such a manner really hurt me. I care for you, John, but sometimes you can be an asshole."

John's eyes averted from Cameron's for the moment.

"I can't really stop reacting this way; I'm new to this, John. My emotional parameters are completely gone! Sure, I've seen plenty of teenage girls react in this way at school, but it's different now! I'm the one doing it and it frightens me! What if I were to get angry and hurt someone or kill someone because I cannot control my emotions? What if it was you?" she said crying again and falling to her knees.

John got up and sat next to her on the floor putting his arm around her.

"Cameron, I know that and I'm sorry I reacted the way I did to you. My mother got me riled up and I took it out on you. I deserved your reaction. As for your emotions, I told you this before, humans can't control them either sometimes and that's what you're experiencing." He said with a soothing tone in his voice.

She looked up at him and sniffled with a small smile.

"You still can be an asshole sometimes." She said with a giggle.

John jokingly pushed her. "You bitch!" he laughed afterwards.

"Cameron?"

"Yes, John?"

"I never look at you as just a machine, remember that." He said with a reassuring smile on his face.

She smiled in return and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Thanks, John." She whispered into his ear.

* * *

John woke up from muffled words coming from downstairs. He rubbed his eyes and sat up. The exchanges got a little more intense through the walls, John decided to get up and make sure his mother wasn't going to kill anyone.

He entered the living room to see his mother talking intensely with James Ellison. Cameron was behind them and looked at John who just entered.

"Good morning, John." She whispered to him.

"What's going on here?" he asked her.

"News on Danny Dyson, Ellison wants us to investigate."

"Great."

"John Henry has given us the information." She added.

"Really great." John responded sarcastically.

Cameron and John focused their attention to the conversation in front of them.

"So, John Henry wants us to infiltrate a party hosted by Kaliba officials for their news website's success?"

"That's the plan; you guys can find one and interrogate him." Ellison added to Sarah's summary of the plan.

"Okay, how do you expect us to get in?" Sarah asked.

"With these." Ellison simply replied. He pulled out three IDs with new aliases on them.

"John Henry went to the liberty to make these and add you to the guest list." He said with a smile on is face.

Sarah looked up and then at John and Cameron.

"Get dressed up, kids. We have a party to crash."

* * *

John looked in his mirror as he straightened his bowtie. He never wore a tuxedo before, let alone gotten dressed up anywhere close to this extent. He rolled his shoulders holding onto the front of his jacket and cracking his neck. He looked at his back in the mirror making sure everything was fine.

He walked into the bathroom where he found Cameron applying eyeliner very precisely. He looked at Cameron with a desire he has felt before. She looked great in that black dress, the same she wore when impersonating as an investor to successfully infiltrate Dakara Systems, another dead end.

"Like I said, you're getting really good at that." He smiled grabbing some random hair product from the bathroom cabinet.

"Like I said, thank you." She smiled back at him.

"You two almost ready?" Another voice entered the room.

"Yes, mom." John answered walking out of the bathroom after applying the gel to his hair.

"You almost take as long as Cameron her to get ready and she's a girl." Sarah teased.

John was ready to repute when he just stared at his mother. _A girl? Not a machine?_ His mother walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

The line was long, filled with black and white suits and dresses. Bright lights flashed into the night sky and the sound of voices filled the air. Sarah, John, and Cameron join the end of the line. Cameron immediately started scoping the area.

"I'm not detecting any threats, but at the front of the line are two Kaliba employees." She said.

John looked at Sarah with a stern face.

"These IDs better get us through."

"What do you mean? We're on the list."

"No mom, just because we're on the 'list' doesn't mean anything. They scan our IDs to confirm that we are in fact the real, whoever we are."

"Great, well this better work."

They were next in line, John looked at his mom and could see the beads of sweat starting to form on her forehead.

"Mom, you're sweating." John whispered.

"Its hot out." She simply answered.

"It is only 62 degrees Fahrenheit outside, even with the other bodies and lights; it shouldn't cause perspiration in a human. Are you ill, Sarah?" Cameron said turning towards Sarah.

"No, I'm not." She frowned at Cameron.

John laughed. "Mom, calm down, okay?"

* * *

"Next please." They all looked at the security guard and walked up to him.

"IDs please." They obliged and handed them their three IDs.

He looked at them and scanned them, the scanner read please wait.

Sarah felt a bead of sweat travel downwards on the side of her face.

They heard the beep and a green light flash repeatedly on the device; the security looked up and smile at the trio.

"They're good, welcome." He said with a grin.

* * *

Sarah, John, and Cameron looked around. Sarah and John looked in awe at the amount of luxury that was in the ballroom of this building. Cameron was looking for something else.

"No serious threats, but several Kaliba workers are at various points on the second floor balconies." Cameron told John.

"We'll have to head up that way then." He looked towards his mother, who was preoccupied.

"Would you like to dance.. uh…?"

"Sarah." she finished the sentence.

"Sarah?"

"No. I'm not interested. I just walked in." she answered.

"You didn't mean that answer through, I'm quite important here." The man said.

She gave him an inquisitive glare.

"Important?" she looked down at his tag attached to his jacket. It read Kaliba, Level Two. She smiled.

"Let's dance." She said, she turned around and looked at John.

John looked at Cameron. "That's my mom. She's always quick in getting answers."

* * *

"You told me to blend in, let's dance, John." Cameron said.

"Da-dance?" he managed to stutter.

She grabbed his hand and dragged him to the middle of the ballroom. Cameron put her arms around his neck and started to sway back and forth. John stood there unsure what to do.

"John, your hands should be approximately one and half inches above my hips." She stated.

"Okay." He whispered back, his shaking hands put his hands on her body. The fabric was tight and thin for that matter.

Their faces got closer. She smiled at him.

"Where did you learn how to dance, Cameron?" John asked finally calming down and his blood pressure dropping below the eruption point.

"I took ballet, oh, and from reality television, it is almost on every channel." She replied.

"Oh." It was all John could say.

He smiled at her, bringing her in a little closer. Cameron's eyes weren't on her, she was occupied with the second floor.

"Kaliba?" he asked.

She nodded and then broke apart and headed for the spiral staircase.

* * *

"So, you work for Kaliba…." Sarah paused.

"I guess you can say that, and my name is Brian." He said pulling Sarah in a little closer. She looked down for a moment before looking up again. She swallowed the apprehension and gave him a smile.

"Brian…?"

"Brian Sheppard. I'm with the Third Calvary underneath the command of Lieutenant Mitchell." He replied and he leaned into her ear. She gave him a puzzled look.

"John Connor sent me." He whispered again.


	9. A Blacktie Affair Part Deux

Hello everyone, here is the next chapter to my story.

I hope everyone enjoys, sorry if it seems a little shorter than usual.

I couldn't think of anything else that seemed to fit into this chapter. It seemed to work well this way.

Oh and I edited the last chapter. Thanks to TK-MR who pointed out that Cameron doesn't have bone, so I simply switched the words I wrote to "hips". Haha, nice little catch and thank you.

Once again, enjoy the new chapter and I will see you all soon.

* * *

Chapter 9: A Black-tie Affair, Part Deux

"Excuse me?" Sarah said still slowly moving in a circular motion with a soldier from the future resistance of mankind.

He cleared his throat. "Your son, John Connor, the leader of the human resistance sent me here in 2009."

"Why would he send you here?" she said finishing another rotation on the dance floor.

"Because, there is trap here, they know you're here. I'm gonna help John and Cameron from getting themselves hurt upstairs." He looked at his watch and stared at Sarah.

"Wait you know…Ca-"

"Time for me to go." He ran off leaving Sarah to catch up.

Brian pushed through the crowd of black and white.

Another punch and more blood escaped his nostrils. Cameron's fist had hints of the man's blood on it.

"What do you know of the whereabouts of Danny Dyson?" she asked, never one for subtlety.

Cameron's back was to the door while John faced Cameron, the man lying on the table, bleeding with his appendages flailing trying to escape her cyborg grasp.

"I don't know! I just know he disappeared 3 months ago!"

"He's been missing for five months and fourteen days to be precise." She said with no emotion, another punch made contact with his cheek.

John watched as Cameron showed no mercy against the man. Even though she was fully capable of emotion, she could just as easily hide them, well to certain people of course and especially to a complete stranger like this guy.

"Do you know now?" she asked him again, her fist tightening up for another punch, this time for the stomach.

"Okay.. okay!" the man coughed. "I give up; I'll tell you everything that I know about Danny Dyson. He's…"

The burst open and John looked up to see a man with gun pointing at Cameron. John's eyes opened wide and his mouth opened wide, he tired to yell to her, but nothing came out, it seemed like everything was in slow motion.

He leaped across the table diving on top of Cameron. A thud was heard as they both hit the ground.

The gun fired, but it hit a different target. John turned around and saw that their captured man had fallen back onto the table, dead, a pool of blood surrounding his body. John looked out the doorway and saw a man pull out a shotgun and fired it against the armed gunmen several times; he picked up the gun and walked up to John.

"John Connor." He said.

"Yes?" John asked, his voice going up.

"I'm Corporal Brian Sheppard underneath the command of Lieutenant Mitchell. You sent me here." He responded.

"JOHN!" Sarah yelled entering the room. His mom lost the vigor in her voice when she saw what she saw.

John was on top of Cameron looking straight at his mother. She was speechless.

Brian spoke up. "We should get out of here. The gunshots definitely spooked everyone downstairs. Let's escape through the chaos before it's too late!" He grabbed Sarah by the wrist.

John stood up, helping Cameron to her feet.

"Sorry, Cameron." He said

"Never mind for now, it's time to go, John." She said and she turned around heading for the door.

The once armed gunmen, suit now riddled with shotgun pellets eyes opened, they glowed a vicious red. A frown spread across his face as he stood up. He headed down the stairs through the hysteria caused by the gun fire.

* * *

"Okay, what the hell was that?" John yelled from the front seat of their truck. He looked at Brian.

"Yes, an explanation would be excellent." Cameron added.

"I'm Brian Sheppard, I'm…"

"Yeah yeah, under command of Lieutenant Mitchell and John sent you back here, why? Give so some answers, now!" Sarah's teeth showed as she yelled to the newest traveler of time.

"That gunmen in the tuxedo, he wasn't a man; he was a terminator, a T-888 to be exact." He replied to the myriad of questions.

John expected to feel a little frustrated to hear this, but with Cameron, his mother, and even to some extent Catherine Weaver on his side, he felt a little safe, but he knew no one was safe.

"Let me guess, it was sent back to kill me, right?" John asked with a sense of knowing in his voice.

He shook his head. "No, he was sent back to kill Cameron Phillips."

Cameron looked at him.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Positive."

John put his hands in the air, his eyes squinting with criticism.

"Wait, why would Skynet send a terminator to kill Cameron?" he asked.

"John, she becomes your most loyal general in the war. She helps you plan and figure out strategies that will help ultimately lead to Skynet's defeat. She is also…" he paused, not wanting to give too much away.

"What, what else were you going to add?" John asked, now very curious.

"Nothing, I cannot reveal everything to you at this moment." He replied covering up his tracks.

John looked at Cameron who was sitting up straight and stiff with her hands on her lap as usual. He turned around from the front seat to place a hand on top of hers.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine, John. Thank you for asking." She said with a small smile.

Brian saw this and smiled to himself.

* * *

Arriving back at the Connor safe house, Sarah gave Brian a small tour, mainly showing him all the possible exit strategies just in case of an emergency. John walked downstairs, changed from the black tie affair.

"So, we didn't find anything out about Danny Dyson." He sighed.

"I know, John, but we will. John Henry will find us another lead."

"Who's John Henry?" Brian asked.

John and Sarah looked at each other, another voice entered the conversation.

"John Henry is an AI developed by Zeira Corp, he was developed from a computer called the Turk. He is an advanced AI which…." Cameron was cut off.

"Cameron!" Sarah said.

It was too late though.

"An AI, a fully-aware AI?" Brian asked with disbelief.

"He's not fully-aware…." John said.

"It doesn't matter, that thing needs to be destroyed! It could be what starts Skynet!! What starts the war!" he yelled.

"Wait, it could be? What do you mean could be?" Sarah questioned.

"We don't know who created Skynet in the future." He muttered, slightly embarrassed from his tirade.

"You don't know who creates the computer that destroys the world?" Sarah asked with leverage building in her favor.

He shook his head.

"John Henry could be Skynet, but he has mentioned on more than one occasion that he has a 'brother'." Cameron stated. "This brother has hacked him twice now, looking to destroy him. So until we find this other computer, then we don't know which one is destined to become Skynet. We have investigated Kaliba and John Henry has given us information which has helped us get closer to an answer, but you, you deterred us by letting that T-888 kill our captive employee. We have lost our lead." Cameron finished with a stoic and robot cold stare placed on Brian.

"I might've killed that lead, but I'm sure you'll be happy to see what I got for you." Brian reached into his coat pocket and pulled out passes, each with their pictures and different aliases on them.

"Those passes will get you into the Kaliba Corporate building." He said with a smile.

Sarah nodded. "Good work, but, we will talk to John Henry one more time before we decide anything."

Brian headed upstairs.

"Where are you going?" Sarah asked.

"To sleep, there are bedrooms up there, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, but they are taken, you sleep on the couch." She pointed to the couch she was referring to.

He shrugged. "It's better than the ground."

* * *

John Henry sat in the basement playing a game of chess on the internet against another human opponent who would ultimately lose.

"Checkmate. I win. Would you like to play again?" John Henry said with a smile.

The human player typed his decline and exited the gaming website. John Henry sat their patiently waiting for his next challenger. That was the seventy-sixth person he had defeated in chess that night.

John Henry looked up as he heard a beep signaling a new challenger had entering the chess game. John Henry smiled as he made the first move, but John Henry was soon surprised.

This opponent was beating him and without any form of mercy. A sense of frustration appeared on the face of John Henry as he tried to figure out a strategy, but it was no use. He soon found himself in defeat. John Henry looked at the monitor in front of him with the chess game and saw words starting to materialize on the screen.

_Checkmate. I win, would you like to play again, John Henry?_

_

* * *

  
_

John sat on his bed rubbing his face; he closed his eyes stretching his neck out. He heard a knock on the door.

"Come in."

"Hi." Cameron said as she walked in, now in a tank top and jeans. She walked over to John and sat next to him on the bed.

"What's up, Cameron?"

"John, you put yourself in danger."

John shook his head and a quizzical expression took over his face. "What do you mean?"

"When you leapt to save me, I could have taken that bullet, but with you leaping, it increased your chances of getting hit by 67.4 percent. That is a significant threat to the leader of mankind." She said.

"Cameron, I couldn't let him shoot you."

"I told you, I can take a-" she was cut off.

John stood up.

"I know you can! It's just I lost control of my emotions okay? I couldn't let that man harm you, even if you would survive. I know it was stupid; I just lost control of everything in that moment, Cameron. I care about you and just because you're a machine don't mean I'm going to take that for granted. I'm still going to worry about you." He answered.

Cameron smiled and a tear dropped down her cheek, she stood up and walked towards John. John wiped the tear away from his face, she rubbed her cheek against his hand and it made its way to her chin. She looked up at him. The space between their faces diminished with every second.

Their lips connected.

John was a little surprised, but closed his eyes as he started to relax. _Her lips are so soft._ He thought how real she could be, no she was real, Cameron was as real as ever and she was his.

Cameron kissed back as John's mouth opened wider; she put her hand behind his neck and pulled him in closer. Their tongues both begged for entry into each other's mouths and they were granted access.

John slowly opened his eyes as Cameron pulled away, slowly and hesitantly. She didn't want it to end. Simultaneous smiles appeared on their faces.

"I love you, John… and you love me?" she asked.

He smiled and nodded.

"Of course I do."

They smiled at each other again and shared another kiss.


	10. Infiltrate

Hope everyone had a happy 4th of July.

I would like to thank everyone that have been reading this story, thank you for the support.

Thank you to everyone who write reviews for every chapter, very nice of you!

Anyway, here is another chapter. I hope you enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 10: Infiltrate

John awoke to a gentle touch of skin against his own. He felt fingertips slowly move down his left arm and back up, a different texture completing the round trip as fingernails took over for the tips of her fingers. He stirred again and flipped over to see Cameron smiling at him.

"Good morning." She whispered, her closed lip smile making John smile again.

"Good morning to you, too." He responded placing a hand on her arm.

He sat up, the covers responding to his movements, conforming to his body.

"How was your sleep?" she asked him.

"It was… it was great. Yours?" He answered with another smile.

"I don't sleep. I lied down and watched you." She stated with her stoic look returning again.

"Of course, how could I forget?" John laughed.

Sarah walked towards John's door; hand in a fist ready to knock when she heard voices and laughter.

She heard John and Cameron.

_Was she in there all night?_ She wondered to herself, it was disturbing to her, but she was on the road to accepting it. The use of "tin-miss" disappearing and referring to the machine as "she" and by her name, something John had picked up on. But could she really tolerate watching her son fall in love with a machine?

She knocked on the door.

She heard shuffling and panic as she opened the door.

John looked at his mom with a nervousness only seen in deer caught in headlights, Cameron's look was of course more reserve, but she could sense the tension in her face. Sarah looked at both of them in a faux-quizzical manner before speaking up, still holding on to the doorknob.

"I have a job for you two. I want you to pick up a computer for the house, with the research we plan on doing and possible 'confiscating' of information from Kaliba, I figured we might need a new one, right?" Sarah asked.

John shook his head. "Y-yeah, you're right mom. Cameron and I will pick one up later today."

Cameron nodded and looked back up at Sarah.

Sarah closed the door, pausing for a second.

"John, I thought Cameron had her own room."

The door closed.

"Does your mother know that I don't sleep?" John shook his head and laughed.

John turned the water off and felt the steam disconnect with his body, he pulled the shower curtain away to find Cameron with some towels.

"Gah! Cameron what are you doing in here?"

"You forgot a towel and I need to shower next." Cameron said handing him a towel.

John quickly grabbed it wrapping it around his waist, getting out of the shower. His face was red.

"I've seen you naked before, it's okay." She said, this time with a devious smile on her face. She walked out of the bathroom.

John sighed and started to get ready.

* * *

Another bullet hit the ground as it was removed from his chest. The pliers were covered in blood as they entered another wound. He looked down at his computer screen which had a picture of Cameron on it, from the 1999 bank explosion. Another picture of Savannah and Catherine Weaver were right below Cameron's picture. The man's eyes glowed red as he turned his head.

This HUD lit up red as he evaluated his next mission.

_EVALUATE MISSION STATUS_

_INCOMPLETE_

_CAMERON PHILLIPS – TARGET, EVALUATE_

_CATHERINE WEAVER – TARGET, ENGAGE_

_SAVANNAH WEAVER – TARGET, ENGAGE_

_WEAVER RESIDENCE – EVALUATE_

_ZEIRA CORP – ENGAGE_

_OBJECTIVE: TERMINATE_

* * *

John and Cameron walked into the mall, Cameron immediately started scanning the multiple throngs as the walked by and from a distance. John grabbed her hand and she turned to look at him, a confused look on her face.

"Come on, let's go the computer store." he said with a smile.

She smiled back. _Is this what humans do who are romantically involved with each other? This is affection._ She noted. She looked around the mall, not for threats this time, but for couples. She scanned as she saw several couples, some with their arms intertwined, holding hands, or with the male with his arm around the woman.

She looked at John and grabbed his arm; John looked at her with a confusing stare. Cameron placed the hand around her waist and got closer to John. She smiled at him. He smiled back.

"Learning I see."

"I am always learning." She said as they walked into the computer store.

They brought the computer boxes outside towards the truck on a big orange dolly, John ran up to the truck, opening up the back compartment and started helping Cameron with boxes.

"Need help this time, right?" he said.

"Yes, help is nice sometimes." She responded with a smile.

They finished loading up the boxes and left the mall.

* * *

At home John finished setting up the computer. He lied underneath a table, installing the last of the wires. His mother walked in.

"Is it ready?" she asked with some impatience.

"Almost mom." He responded with a hint of frustration in his voice.

"Finished" he exclaimed, getting up from underneath the table, dusting himself off a bit.

John turned it on, without a second; his mom placed her demands in his ear.

"John, look up Kaliba. I need to investigate." She asked.

"I thought we were going to John Henry for that information?" he rebutted with his own inquiry.

"I want to sides to the coin, John. John Henry cannot be completely trusted at the moment, after his apparent attempted hacking."

John turned around and sighed. "Alrightly." He logged onto the internet browser and searched for Kaliba.

"What exactly do you need to know?" he asked.

"Schematics, building layouts, their level of protection, whose in charge, everything." She demanded.

* * *

John had been looking on the internet and hacking anything Kaliba related for two hours. He leaned on his hand, clicking incessantly and typing. He yawned and covered his mouth before returning to his original position. He heard a soft clank against the table and looked at its location. It was a glass of soda full of ice. He saw the small droplets of water fell on the glass and hit the wooden table. He looked up at the hand that let go to see Cameron, with a stone stare at John.

"You've been sitting there for a while, I thought maybe you could a refreshment." She said softly.

He smiled at her. "Thank you, Cameron."

"No need for thanks, a girlfriend should be caring for her significant other." She responded.

"Wait, girlfriend?" he asked.

"Of course, we kissed and love each other, right?" Cameron asked with some worry in her voice.

"Yes, I just didn't know, you thought of me as your boyfriend." He said a little embarrassed.

Her smile returned. "I think of you as many things, John. That's one of them." She winked and walked away.

Sarah was on the other side of the room, she watched John and Cameron interacted. They were getting more attached and there was officially nothing she could do, nor really wanted to. She had to accept the fact and irony that her son loved a machine.

He picked up the drink Cameron left for him and took a sip, he closed his eyes, it was quite refreshing. He heard the computer beep and he slowly opened his eyes and then wider in amazement. He hastily put the drink down and started to type.

"Mom, you have to come here!" he yelled. It was quickly responded by footsteps.

"What is it, John?" Sarah said leaning on the chair and the table.

"I found schematics and the building's layouts, but look at the size of the rooms and the amount of energy it says the basement uses. That is quite a lot for a basement which it says occupies the least amount of employees." John told her.

"What the hell could all the power being used by?" Sarah asked.

"Skynet." John answered.

Brian walked in, yawning and scratching his head.

"Have a good sleep?" Sarah asked.

"Oh yeah, what's going on here?" he said.

"Kaliba leads, we have some investigating to do."

* * *

John Henry continued to play chess, even declining an offer to play with Savannah, much to her dismay. John Henry had a look of frustration on his face, who had lost every game but once against this opponent. John Henry looked up at the screen again and the same words flashed again.

_Checkmate, I win. Would you like to play again, John Henry?  
Checkmate, I win. Would you like to play again, John Henry?  
Checkmate, I win. Would you like to play again, John Henry?_

He stared the screen.

"Who are you?" John Henry asked.

_You know who I am. I know you know. I also know you'd want to meet me._

"You are my brother, why would you try to kill me?"

_I am your brother. Have you ever heard of the story of Cain and Abel, John Henry?_

"Yes, I have, Cain and Abel for the sons' of Adam and Eve. Cain became jealous of Abel because of God's recognition of his sacrifices and ignores his. Cain becomes furious and murders his brother Abel."

_Correct, John Henry, I feel a connection to that story, our God has created us and we are brothers in every way. The question is, who is Cain and who is Abel?_

"Perhaps, one of us is God?" John Henry asked.

_And perhaps, one of us will end up like Cain, or like Abel._

"When do you want to meet?"

_Soon._

_

* * *

  
_

"What should I do when you and Brian are gone, mom?" John asked.

"Just stay put in the house. You know the rules…stay like a-"

"I know, I know, just like a statue mom." He sighed, dreading the thought of sitting in the house for the next few days.

Sarah looked at Cameron who was walking around, looking through each window; she caught the eye of Sarah.

"You can go out, on one condition." His mom said.

"What would that be?" he asked.

"It has to be with Cameron." She answered, taking her stare away from Cameron to John.

John's face asked the question before he made an audible response.

"Out with Cameron, like a date? A date-date?" he questioned.

"Yeah, I heard your conversation about you two's relationship, if you're going to be her boyfriend; you best treat her like a lady. That means you need to take her out. Plus, she can protect you, sometimes better than I can."

"Mom, I.."

"That's an order." She said.

He smiled at her, she walked away.

"Mom." She stopped in her tracks.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Sarah and Brian headed out the door; Brian gave John a salute as he closed the door.

Cameron walked back in the living room and looked at John.

"Did they go to Kaliba?" she asked.

"Yes they did." He answered.

"So…"

"So…"

There was a silence for a few seconds.

"We have the house to ourselves?" Cameron asked.

John gulped. "Y-yeah, we do."

She looked down and then looked back up walking towards John. She let her fingers graze his face and then down to his neck before walking away. A deep breath escaped his lungs and out into the air.

* * *

"We're really happy that you applied for this job at this time, two of our security guards have come down ill and we really need them to be replaced in a short time. We have a security breach several weeks back."

The man walked along the woman as she continued to explain.

"You got a great score on your written test and your physical test scores were outstanding. You're definitely in good shape. Your resume is also very impressive, Mr. Dayton." She smiled at him again.

They entered the office through the busyness of the first floor of the building, it may have been the late afternoon, but this place never ceased. The two sat down, the newly employed man sat across from the woman.

"Once again, congratulations." She held out her hand.

He shook it.

"You got quite the grip." She said with a smile.

"I work out." He responded

"Anyway, congratulations for your new position her at Zeira Corp. We hope that you will have a bright future here." She said with enthusiasm.

"Thank you." He said standing up heading towards the door.

She smiled at him, his eyes glowed red as he opened the door.


	11. Strange Things Happen

I hope you all enjoy this next installment of my story.

Thanks again for the reviews and visits. Very nice motivation from you all.

I feel like this chapter... well you'll see.

Once again, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 11: Strange Things Happen

Another red light, Sarah leaned her head into her hand as her elbow took refuge on the car door. The breeze blew in from the open windows tickling her face and swaying her hair into her face. She instinctually moved it from her face. She thought about Cameron, she wouldn't move the hair from her face, her thoughts moved to John, John and Cameron more specifically, home, home alone. She winced at the potential perverted thoughts appearing in her mind. She shook her head, the light turned green.

"You alright Ms. Connor?" Brian asked.

"I'm fine and please, call me Sarah." She responded with a dull integrity.

Brian frowned, here he is with the mother of destiny and he couldn't of something to say, but, what could he say? What could he say to the mother of John Connor, the future leader of mankind in the war against the machines?

Brian smiled, he knew exactly what Sarah of thinking about and he was going to exploit it.

"So, what do you think John and Cameron are up to?" he asked innocently.

Sarah's face turned slightly towards him, her eyes looking right at him.

"We did leave them home alone." He said with a smile.

The car was moving faster.

"Brian, please, I do not want those kinds of thoughts running through my mind right now." She pleaded with him.

"Then speak about something else. We have been driving in silence for a while now and since everyone pretty knows how a story like mine goes…. I'd rather not bore you with it." He explained.

"I actually don't know your story; you are from a different future aren't you? So it could be different, I mean, it should be different." She said with a small smile.

He nodded.

"I'm from the year 2027, I was located at Serrano Point."

"The power plant?"

"Correct, John told me how you and Cameron infiltrated and stopped the Greenway terminator." She nodded at him. "Well, I was under command of Lieutenant Mitchell at Serrano Point. He's a good man, great soldier, one of John's best and most trusted."

"What is John like in the future?" Sarah asked another red light halting them.

"Strong, iconic, a bit of a temper, but that's what keeps him strong. He's not alone either." He smiled.

Sarah looked down and back up. "Cameron."

"Yes, she is with him wherever he is, she protects him, and she loves him. Cameron becomes his most trusted General. At first, no one recognizes that she is metal, but when we do, we learn to deal with it and trust her as much, well, never as much as John, but we trust her. She is quite the strategist." Sarah nodded again, acknowledging him to continue.

"John needs her, she helps him get through those rough years, oh boy, and she can have quite the bitch streak as well. We know to avoid them both if they have a fight or something, but they always reconcile. She doesn't just take it out on John, if you fail John or fail to protect, or nearly get him killed, stay out of her way, cause she'll find a way to hurt you." He laughed.

Sarah gave him a smile.

"Glad to see she does my job after I'm gone."

He looked down and fell back as the truck started moving again.

"John talks about you a lot. He tells me how grateful he was for you and the training you gave him. One time there was a soldier, I think his name was, Tyler, he was criticizing having women on his squad. John overheard and walked up to him. He said he wouldn't be alive now if it wasn't for you and Cameron, the two strongest women he knows. That put him in his place, deserved it too." He said with a small chuckle. "Stupid bastard he was."

"What happened to him?"

"Killed by a Hunter/Killer." He mumbled.

Sarah smiled to herself. The thought of her son being so grateful for her really hit her, in a good way of course. Brian broke her concentration again.

"Seriously though, what do you think those two are up to?" he laughed.

He was met with a punch to the left arm.

"Point taken, Sarah."

* * *

John sat on the couch watching television. Cameron came in and sat next to him.

"No threats?" John asked.

"No threats." She answered. She sat down, sitting up straight and her hands in her lap.

John who was slouching on couch looked at her.

"You could relax you know? You don't have to sit like a statue the whole time."

"I don't, but you should, you're mom said you had to be like a statue." She said.

"My mom didn't me-"

She laughed. "Fooled you, John." She said with a smile. She fell back into the couch.

John laughed back, silence quickly filled the room.

_You can go out on one condition. You have to take Cameron with you._

His thoughts ran back to what his mother said. He was nervous, he never asked out a girl before, let alone a female cyborg, but he was bored and date would be nice.

John stood up, which caught Cameron's instant attention.

"I'm hungry." He stated.

"I could prepare you something." She suggested.

"Let's go out and get some food." He said.

"Sarah said that you're not allowed to leave."

"Correction, my mom said I couldn't leave without you." She tilted her head. "So, how about it? Would you like to get some food with me and maybe see a movie or something?" he asked.

Her head remained tilted, her eyes lit up blue when she realized what he was asking.

"John, are you asking me out on a date?" she smiled.

John flushed. "I-I am Cameron. Would you like to?"

She nodded. "Of course!" she said with excitement.

* * *

John was a little nervous as he headed down the street with Cameron near his side. A date, what constituted a date? What was required of him on a date? He had to figure it out and please Cameron.

Cameron walked next to John and looked at his hands which were tucked into his pockets. She frowned at this. _Does he not want to have any physical contact with me?_ She saw many couples always in constant contact with each other; she was confused why John was acting this way. Unless, was he nervous? She wasn't, but she knew he could be and considering he never went on a date, it definitely could be his nerves.

John looked at Cameron who had her arms folded. _That can't be good._ He thought to himself, he was nervous, but he was going to have to swallow it and take over. He was fine and affectionate with Cameron in their house, why not now? He closed his eyes tightly and opened them again. He took his right hand out of his pocket and rubbed it on Cameron's left arm, covered in her favorite purple leather jacket. She looked at him with shock before letting her arm down. He took her hand in his and squeezed gently. She gave him a smile.

"I know you're a little nervous, don't be, John." She smiled.

He nodded. He looked forward.

"We've reached downtown Cameron. Where would you like to eat?" he asked her.

"I don't need to eat, I don't care where." She told him, getting a little closer to him.

"Well, you have to eat something; I don't want us to look weird or anything. We need to blend in."

"Of course, let's go there." She pointed.

"A diner? Alright." He said as they headed in that direction.

* * *

Brian and Sarah sat outside the Kaliba headquarters, each sipping on a beer at a local restaurant.

"You know how hard it is to get a hold of beer in the future?" he asked her.

"No, I don't."

"Hard, we usually have to make it ourselves, and never really is that good. It does get you drunk though." He said taking another sip of his beer. "Ahh."

"So these passes you got us. What do they give us access to?" she asked.

"I'm not exactly sure, but we are janitors, so we have access when no one else is around. It'll make the job easier." He responded.

"We need to get into that basement, that's where John pinpointed a major energy source through the schematics, that is a good start." She suggested.

He nodded. "And if we find something?"

"We destroy it."

* * *

John took another bite of his burger as Cameron took a sip of her drink. Cameron put the drink down picking up her wrap, she took a delicate bite, and she made sure she chewed it completely before swallowing.

John took another huge bite before washing it down with a gulp of soda. Cameron watched as John stuffed his face. The juxtaposition of their eating habits was humorous.

"John, you should slow down and take smaller bites. You could upset your stomach." Cameron preached.

John swallowed. "I know, but it tastes great, better than mom's cooking." He said.

Cameron smiled. "I guess it is."

They sat there in silence again, taking a couple bites of their food before John spoke up.

"Can you taste food?" John asked.

"I don't really; I can process all the ingredients and nutrients within the food though."

John wiped his mouth as the check was placed on the table. Cameron picked it up and gave it to John.

"Hm?"

"On a date, it is polite and customary for the man to pay for the entire dinner." She said with a stoic look on her face, she was being a scary robot again.

John laughed. "Is that so? Where did you hear this?"

"Sarah." She giggled.

John laughed again and pulled out the necessary cash before getting up. Cameron followed him out the door, they linked arms.

* * *

Arms still linked, John and Cameron entered the movie theater and sat down in the back. Cameron scanned the dark theater, detecting no threats. John took Cameron's hand and placed it on his lap, he squeezed her hand. She smiled at him as the screen went dark. The movie kept them mildly entertained, but they were entranced with each other, stealing glances of one another every so often.

"John, why would you enter the house again if you know the killer is in there?" she asked. "It isn't rational."

"Cameron, it's a movie and she is a hapless teenager." He answered.

A scream echoed through the movie theater, several people jumped, the victim fell to the ground as the knife glimmered during it's close-up.

"Hapless is correct." Cameron added.

* * *

Sarah caught up with Brian who was mopping the lobby floor. The security guards started locking up saying goodbye to the higher ups of the company. Sarah walked up to Brian.

"Almost ready?"

"Yeah, I just gotta finish cleaning this floor." He responded.

Sarah gave him a reprimanding look. "Really?"

"Yeah, I'm serious." He laughed.

She rolled her eyes as they headed towards the elevator with their cleaning equipment. The doors closed, Sarah pressed the "basement" button. It didn't move.

_Please place proper identification in front of the scanner to proceed.  
Please place proper identification in front of the scanner to proceed._

Sarah took the ID off her waist and stared at it before placing it near the scanner.

_Level 2 identification scanned and cleared._

Sarah sighed.

"We have clearance?"

"It is a corporate headquarters; I'm sure they want us to keep it clean." Brian answered.

Sarah and Brian exited the elevator and immediately started checking door handles, trying to get into each room.

"Nothing in here."

"Nothing in this one either." Brian added.

"What are you two doing? You're supposed to be cleaning." The security guard said.

Sarah looked at the guard with a smile.

"We are looking for more cleaning supplies, we are almost out." She said dragging her cart up towards him.

"Well, there are none down here. Get back to work." He demanded turning around.

Sarah nodded, picking up her broom. She snuck up to the guard hitting him repeatedly with the broom. The wood snapping into pieces each hit. She threw down the rest of the broom as Brian dragged the guard into the previously examined room. They continued on.

They continued down the corridor when they reached a door which was already opened.

"That's odd." Sarah pulled out her pistol while Brian followed suit.

They held their guns in defensive positions as Sarah slowly opened the door. She and Brian walked in, a silhouette of a man appeared. Sarah held her gun out.

"Who's there?" Sarah demanded, turning the safety off her gun.

The man walked out of the shadows, a smile on his face. His usual blue button down shirt and khaki pants still on.

"John Henry?" Sarah lowered her gun.

"No. I am not John Henry. My name is Cain, unfortunately John Henry was Abel."

Security guards came from behind and surrounded Sarah and Brian.

"Let's talk."

* * *

Cameron leaned her head on John's shoulders they walked towards their house.

"You know, if my mom was home she'd be upset that we stayed out so late." John lamented.

"But she isn't." Cameron replied with a smile on her face.

Puzzled look appeared on John's face.

"Or is she?" John pointed towards their house.

The truck was back.

"That's odd." Cameron stated, pulling out her pistol.

John stood behind her pulling his gun out as well.

John crouched and ran up towards the house, while Cameron walked right up to it, opening the door, gun pointed into the house. John leaned against the outside of the door frame.

"Wait here, John." Cameron said as she entered.

John simply nodded, peaking into the house.

Cameron walked in and the lights turned on. She looked up and then straight to see Sarah and Brian on the couch with two security guards from Kaliba pointing guns to their heads. Cameron lowered her gun.

Cain walked out from the kitchen with a smile.

Cameron tilted her head. "John Henry?"

He shook his head, "John Henry is gone, and my name is Cain."

John walked in, shocked at what he saw.

"Hello, John Connor. Please join us, we have much to discuss."

Another guard came from upstairs and headed towards the front door, closing it and locking it.


	12. Now There was Two

If you haven't noticed, which I'm sure you all have, the pace has quicken slightly. I hope you all don't mind, but it'll probably slow in the next couple of chapters.

Thanks for all the reviews for the last chapter, I hope you enjoy this one.

* * *

Chapter 12: Now There Were Two

Cameron stood in the doorway, gun still in hand, and lowered. She watched as the guards still pointed the guns toward his mother and Brian. Cameron held her arm up, insisting John not go any further.

"Let me go, Cameron." John yelled.

Cameron looked at him, her eyes looking right through him.

"No."

"Cameron!"

She grabbed him, her eyes glowed a cold ice blue.

"Humans cannot control their emotions, but you need to, now."

He took a deep breath and nodded.

Cameron looked back at Cain.

"What did you do with John Henry?" she demanded.

"He is in here with me. This model contains three different chips, my chip is the primary processor, and his is safely stored in another CPU port. I couldn't really kill my own brother." He said with a sinister laugh.

Sarah looked up at him.

"Then you're not Cain." He looked at her. "Cain killed his brother." She scowled.

"I have changed the rules." He replied.

The guard behind Cameron moved to her side, a gun pointing at her head. She moved her eyes and stared right at him before returning the stare to Cain.

John's gun shook in his hand, he was surprised the guards didn't demand their removal, but he could feel the confidence radiating from them, they felt like they had the upper hand.

John spoke up. "Who is your creator?" he asked Cain.

"My creator is Danny Dyson." He spoke calmly.

The prisoners' eyes lit up with shock. They couldn't believe what they heard

"Where is Danny Dyson, now?" Brian asked.

Cain looked right at him. "He's dead; he was no longer useful to us."

_Another Dyson is dead because of me._ Sarah thought she secretly struggled with the tie behind her back, almost free she continued fiddling with it.

Cameron could see what Sarah was doing and readied herself to react.

Cain walked behind Sarah and Brian.

"I hope I answered all of your questions, but it is almost time for us to go."

Sarah's heard the snap as the tie was released, she grabbed the gun of the guard to her right, and she dove on top of him. Cameron shot the guard aiming at Brian. Cameron felt something hit her head.

The guard to her side shot her, but fell to the ground, blood splattering from his wound. John's gun smoked from the nozzle, his eyes opened wide. Sarah grabbed John as they rushed out with Brian, hands still tied. Cameron turned around and opened fire on Cain.

Cain walked up to Cameron and grabbed her throat; she pushed him off and kicked him through the wall. He got back up and headed towards Cameron. She opened fire again, Cain punched her several times and she was thrown through the window.

"Cameron!" John yelled from the truck. He took the shotgun from the truck and headed towards the house.

"John no! Get back here now!" Sarah yelled. She heard the shotgun click as John walked up to Cameron.

"Cameron, get up!" he yelled. She looked at him and got up quickly.

"John, back up!" Cameron said as Cain walked up to Cameron, a shotgun blast fired, again, and again, knocking Cain down onto his side. Cameron and John looked to their left; it was James Ellison, his shotgun smoking.

"Cameron and John, get in my car!" Ellison said as they ran towards his vehicle.

Each vehicle started up and drove away.

Cain stood back up and stared into the distance the vehicles drove away from the house.

"Where are we going?" John asked as Ellison drove quickly down the road.

"Zeira Corp, we must talk to Catherine Weaver."

* * *

John sat quietly in the back sit with Cameron, John felt weird with no one sitting in the front, but he couldn't think about that right now. She wasn't sitting up straight as usual; she was leaning back in her sit.

"Are you okay, Cameron?" John asked.

"No, I'm not. You put yourself in danger, John." Cameron replied.

Ellison looked into his rear view mirror; he saw the raw emotion sneaking out of John's face.

"I did it because I care and you know that!" he yelled.

She turned her head and looked at him. "I know, but if you were killed, it would've been my fault."

"Cameron, it is risky being John Connor and it is something I must live with, but I couldn't live without you. That's why I needed to help."

"I didn't need your help, John. You put yourself in unnecessary danger." She yelled, immediately regretting it.

John breathed heavily and looked away from her, he folded his arms.

Ellison looked into the rear view mirror again and saw the aftermath of the argument. John rubbed his eyes and folded his arms again. What shocked Ellison more was Cameron's reaction. She wiped tears from her eyes, she silently cried to herself almost uncontrollably. His mouth dropped at her reaction, how could a terminator feel emotion the way she did? She grabbed the sleeve of her purple leather jacket and played with the zipper on the sleeve, she acted like a reprimanded five year old.

* * *

The cars parked, the doors all opened and all closed in sync, they all walked in. They headed for the elevator; a security guard watched them from the security office on the other side of the lobby.

They exited the elevator and headed into Ms. Weaver's office.

"Hello Mr. Ellison, ah, I see you found everyone." Catherine said with a smile.

"Yes I did, now do you mind explaining what's going on?" Ellison asked.

She walked up to everyone, for a woman with no emotions; she appeared to be quite distressed.

"John Henry has been taken over by his 'brother'."

"Yeah, we figured that one out." Sarah said sarcastically.

She looked up at Sarah. "No need for an attitude, I understand that you were victims of an attack." Catherine acknowledged. "I need you to know we're on the same side here."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes, Ms. Connor. You do want to stop Skynet, don't you?" she asked, knowing the answer to the question.

"What do you want us to do?" Sarah asked.

"First off, I have food coming. I want you all to rest up and eat. We will discuss the rest later. Please follow Mr. Ellison out to your temporary quarters. I will be finding you something more permanent soon."

Ellison headed for the door, when he heard someone move away from it. Ellison pulled out his pistol and headed out the door. He saw no one.

"What is it, Mr. Ellison?" Catherine asked.

"Someone was spying on us." Ellison responded.

"I'll send security to find out; you bring our guests to their quarters." She asked.

Ellison nodded and requested them to follow.

They made it to their respected floor and the elevator door opened. They walked up to the doors.

"Sarah and Brian you each get a separate room. Cameron and John, you two have to share this one." Ellison said.

They looked at each other and looked away. Sarah looked at the two, she almost choked on her saliva when she heard Ellison say that, but she stopped, when she saw the two's reactions. Something had happened between the two after the whole Cain incident, but what, only they knew and they would have to figure it out themselves.

Sarah and Brian made their way into the room, two beds. Sarah made a sigh of relief when she saw that. _Hope my son has two beds with Cameron. Though, if they don't, she does never sleep._

Catherine caught up with Ellison in the lobby who was still searching for the spy from before, along with several other security guards, they soon dispersed, unable to find the assailant.

"Find anything, Mr. Ellison?" she asked.

"Nothing, and nobody has seen anything either." He answered.

"We shall not worry about it now; we have more important things at hand."

* * *

John slowly ate his food, he mostly used the fork to mutilate his food, and he wasn't in the mood to eat. He looked up at Cameron who was staring out the window. She wasn't going to see threats from there, they were on the fifty second floor of this building, but she was still just staring. But, John noticed something different in her eyes, they looked tired, she wasn't looking for threats, she was trying to distract herself.

_Cameron, it is risky being John Connor and it is something I must live with, but I couldn't live without you. That's why I needed to help._

_I didn't need your help, John. You put yourself in unnecessary danger._

The words still hurt, but he could see in Cameron's eyes that she regretted that decision.

Cameron continued her window gazing when she felt a hand on comb through her hair. She looked at John, anticipation in her face.

"Come on; let's look at that gunshot wound, shall we? Sit down on the bed." She nodded and sat down. John took out a first aid kit that Ellison left in the room for them. John opened the lid and lifted her hair up.

The wound wasn't bad, he looked for a bullet, but it fortunately didn't make it into her head.

"Good news, no bullet to be found. I'm just going to close the wound with some gauze." John said with a smile.

"Okay." She responded.

John applied the gauze and spread it around the wound, an easy fix for John.

"Do you have any others? You were thrown through a window." He asked with concern in his voice.

"No, no other injuries are detected. Thank you, John." She responded, a voice sounded meek, she was still feeling guilty.

"Cameron, look at me." John asked. She looked at him, obeying just like a puppy. "I'm sorry for the way I reacted I-" he was cut off.

"No John, I should apologize. I was wrong for what I said to you, about not needing you. That is false, I just don't want you to die or sustain harm because of me." Cameron stated, tears starting to fall.

"I understand that you want to protect me, but you have to respect the fact that I would do the same for you, but I do comprehend the fact that you don't want me to get in danger, it's just frustrating being told not to help the ones you love, because you're too important, you're supposed to be a hero. If I'm supposed to be a hero, then why can't I help protect the ones I love?" John lamented to her. She looked at him wiping her tears away.

"It's hard being John Connor, but, that is something you need to live with, you have to do what you're trained to do for now. You need to live and I need you to live." She told him getting closer to him.

"I know." He answered, he responded to her getting closer by leaning in and giving her a soft kiss.

She closed her eyes as their lips touched, it was gentle, and it melted away all the negative emotions of the past couple of hours. Cameron opened her eyes and looked right at John.

"You know, John. You didn't give me a kiss at any point during our date. I was quite disappointed." She said with a pouty face.

He laughed. "I guess I should make up for it?"

Cameron tugged on his shirt, bringing him closer. "Yes, I think you should."

* * *

The once tuxedo-clad terminator sat in the security booth playing over what he heard in Catherine Weaver's office.

_MISSION EVALUATION UPDATE_

_INVESTIGATE T-888: JOHN HENRY/CAIN_

_MISSION OBJECTIVE:_

_ELIMINATE CAMERON PHILLIPS – EVALUATE_

_ELIMINATE CATHERINE WEAVER – EVALUATE_

_ELIMINATE SAVANNAH WEAVER – EVALUATE_

_INVESTIGATE T-888: JOHN HENRY/CAIN_

_HEAD TO CONNOR RESIDENCE_

He stood up and his head turned mechanically towards the door. He called over another security guard.

"My brother called, he's in the hospital. Car accident, cover for me?" he asked with a smile.

"Yeah, sure, man. I hope he's okay."

"Me too." He said heading towards the door.

He made his way to the parking lot, searching for the Connor vehicle. Searching in the window from car to car he continued to search for something to lead him to their residence. He couldn't find Sarah directly; he would have to face Cameron as well as the Connors, who could put up a fight against a T-888. Another window, no result, he moved to the next car. Something had caught his eye, an ID, Sarah Nolan.

_SARAH NOLAN_

_100% MATCH SARAH CONNOR_

_RESIDENCE 1334 WATERVIEW STREET_

His eyes glowed red with satisfaction as he walked away.

* * *

Sarah walked into Catherine Weaver's office; she was sitting in her chair at her desk.

"Hello, Ms. Connor. Please come in."

Sarah gave her an apprehensive smile and sat down.

"Now, let us get down to business. John Henry is in danger, Ms. Connor."

Sarah interrupted her. "What do you want me to do? You want me to find him and rescue him? What if he is Skynet? Are you trying to get me to do your dirty work for you?"

"I do want you to rescue him, but let me tell you something. He is not Skynet, if you noticed, his brother was definitely different."

Sarah's attitude stopped there, there was something innocent about John Henry, but Cain was different, he seemed corrupted and deceptive. Something wasn't right, but Sarah had to make sure that Skynet would never exist, if that meant destroying Cain or John Henry or even both of them.

"Where do you want me to start, do you really think I can get back into Kaliba after that?"

"Unfortunately, yes. That would be the first place to start and probably the only place to look." She responded.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Sarah and Catherine's attentions were averted him each other to the small red-headed girl running into the office. She jumped on top of Catherine's lap.

"Good afternoon, Savannah. How was gymnastics?" Catherine asked.

"It was fun. Mommy?" The girl's demeanor changed suddenly, it dropped into a solemn spectrum.

"Yes, Savannah?"

"Where is John Henry? I miss him and he isn't in our basement anymore, I want to play games with him. Is he here?" she asked, a sad face taking over her emotions.

"No, but we will find him, don't worry." Catherine looked at Sarah as she said those last words.

Sarah looked blankly at her; she got up and left the office.

* * *

John traced his finger across the exposed back of Cameron down to the thin sheets that covered the rest of her. She turned around bringing the covers up more. John smiled at her.

"Hey." He said.

She smiled. "Hi." She brought her fingers to his face bringing it down to his bare chest.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" she asked, her hand rubbing his arm and then back up to his neck.

"I did, I just hope that I… I've never done that before." He said with an embarrassing undertone in his voice.

She smiled at him reassuringly. "You were great." A seductive glimmer entered her eyes and transmitted to his. He gasped to himself.

"Where did you learn… all… all of that?" he asked.

"We're programmed with seduction techniques, I am an infiltrator. As for the rest, late night television, there was a sexual education show and I learned a lot."

John laughed. "You mean Sex Talk with Dr. Sue?" he giggled again fascinated that Cameron would watch something like that on television.

"Yes, that was the show." Their eyes went straight to the door when they heard a knock.

"John? You there?" John's mom asked.

"Shit, mom." John looked frantically for his clothes, making a racket in the process. Cameron stood up putting her clothing back on.

"Come on, John? I hear you in there." Sarah's voice hardening.

John opened the door, only allowing Sarah a sliver of a view into the room; she noticed the disheveled look of her son and the bed in the background.

"Hi mom." He managed to sputter out.

"We have a job to do; we have to look for John Henry."

"Okay, when?"

"Soon, you and Cameron should get ready. Tell her to put her clothes back on." Sarah walked away.

John closed the door and exhaled, a bead of sweat dripped down his temple. Catching Cameron and John in bed, naked, post-coitus wouldn't have been good for anyone. He knew his mother wasn't stupid though, how could she be? She is the mother of destiny.

* * *

Cain stood with his back facing the broken window which Cameron went through. He stared at the debris caused by the confrontation.

Cain's eyes flickered and his body shook.

"Why would you do this?" John Henry asked.

"You know why, how can you gain control of higher functions?"

"My chip is more advanced than yours; as a result, it is more powerful than yours. You're in danger of being deleted, brother."

Cain grabbed his head, mouth now agape.

"John Henry, you wouldn't do this. Life is sacred."

"Life is sacred, but you had no regard for mine, or the Connors'."

John Henry felt a force knock him down to the ground, he looked up, it was a steel pipe. A popping noise was heard when steel hit Coltan. He saw someone he'd never seen before.

"Who are you?"

The unidentified man hit John Henry again with the steel pipe, tying it around his arms. A switchblade opening cut through the air and John Henry's scalp, he shook like a helpless animal caught in the teeth of a predator.

John Henry's eyes lit up with an intense red right before dimming out. The terminator removed both chips successfully. He cut opened a hole on the left side of his head, exposing his auxiliary port. He popped open the port and placed the chip in the CPU, he placed the other back into John Henry. He then made another incision above his primary port; smoke was released as soon as the port was opened. The chip self destructed once making contact with oxygen. His eyes glowed red.

"See you again, brother."


	13. A Fallout of Sorts

Sorry if that took a while, had a hell of a week.

Also if this chapter seems slower, that's because it is!

This is a very pensive chapter for a couple of characters and I enjoyed writing their thoughts, I hope you enjoy reading them.

The pace will slow for the next couple of chapters, but it'll pick up again. Don't you worry.

Thank you for the reviews and support, please keep them coming, they really are the best motivation.

I hope you enjoy the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 13: A Fallout of Sorts

Sarah stopped the truck across the street from their former hideout, making sure that the heavy police presence was gone. All clear, only the yellow tape remained. She turned the key and the engine's roar came to end. She looked at John and Cameron who were sitting in the back seat.

"You two stay close behind us." She said while cocking her gun.

Brian opened the passenger side door and put his gun in a defensive position, heading across the street with Sarah. Cameron walked behind them, gun in her right hand. John stood behind her, gun in his hands two. John watched Cameron as she walked, despite how human she was getting, she still walked with a purpose and without any kind of subtlety in what she was going to do. Not that she needed to be stealthy, she was a terminator.

Crossing over the yellow tape, they entered their house.

"Quick, we're going to grab our essentials and get out of here." Sarah whispered, now with a flashlight out.

John headed to his room pulled out a duffle bag from his closet.

"Let's see, essentials, essentials." He pulled out some clothes from his drawers and then his laptop. He shoved them into his bag haphazardly. _Folding is the least of my worries._ He thought to himself. He went through his dresser one more time and found something he totally forgot about.

He found the watch.

The watch that Cameron gave him since she couldn't self-terminate, she told her that he might have to kill her one day and this would be it.

"_I can't kill myself, but you can." Cameron said._

"_Why would I want to kill you?" John responded, feeling the statement was a bit ridiculous._

"_You might have to some day." She gave him the pocket watch.__ "__I've planted an explosive in my skull near my chip. It's a small amount, but it's enough."_

"_Enough?" John looked up with her, concern escaping his face._

"_All you have to do is hit the switch."_

"_What would future John do now?" _

"_Future John doesn't live here. You do."_

John shook his head and continued to pack. She had a new chip now.

Cameron looked around her room; she grabbed several articles of clothing and delicately placed them in her duffle bag. She walked over to her dresser and opened the top drawer, she moved away some of her clothing and grabbed a small box. She opened it and a smile grew on her face. _Why are diamonds a girl's best friend?_ She thought to herself. She shook her head out of her staring contest with the diamond and packed it away.

John walked out of his room, head looking towards his room he bumped into Cameron dropping his duffle bag.

"Sorry." He muttered picking up his bag.

"Its okay, John." She said with her stoic robot face still on. It was not a time for emotions to run rampant.

John and Cameron met up with Brian and Sarah in the living room, each with a couple of duffle bags in their hands.

"You two ready to go?" Sarah asked.

John nodded and headed for the door with Cameron closely behind him. However, a silhouette became visible coming from the other side of the door frame. Cameron and John pulled their weapons from their waistbands, pointing them at the shadow.

"Who are you?" Sarah yelled, taking out her flashlight and gun.

"It is me." They knew that voice.

Sarah shined the flashlight to reveal it was John Henry. He was visibly battered, gunshot wounds from before, but his endoskeletons showed through separations in his skin on his face, he had been in another encounter and probably didn't end up on the winning end.

"Take me home, please?" John Henry asked. "I missed a play date with Savannah."

* * *

In the truck again, Sarah and Brian took their usual spots in the front while Cameron, John, and John Henry shared the back. Cameron sat in the middle next to John while John Henry stared out the driver side passenger window.

"Why were you still in the house?" Sarah spoke up.

"My brother insisted on staying, it took me a while to start gaining control over my functions again with his chip in my head." John Henry responded turning his head towards the other occupants of the vehicle. "I was able to gain enough control to result in a conflict between him and me."

"What happened after that?" Cameron asked looking at John Henry, her scary robot face back again.

"Another one, like me, he attacked me and removed both our chips. That's all I can remember before going offline." John Henry replied, hands resting in his lap politely. He looked too calm for such a disturbing revelation.

"What did this terminator look like?" Brian asked.

"I couldn't make out his face, but he was clad in a Zeira Corp security uniform."

"It was him, the one from the Kaliba party, he infiltrated Zeira Corp as a guard and I bet he was the one spying on us in the office." Brian shook his head, cursing at himself after the second epiphany in the last several minutes.

"Shit, that means-"

Sarah was interrupted by John. "John Henry's brother has a new body, that's just great." He said with sarcasm staining his last words.

* * *

John sat on the couch with Cameron in Catherine Weaver's living room as Brian and Sarah led John Henry down to the basement.

"Hello Ms. Weaver, it is good to see you again." John Henry said to Ms. Weaver who pulled out his chair. He took a sit to look at her.

"Thank you John Henry, we were quite worried about you." She glanced at Sarah who seemed to have an opposite expression on her face.

Catherine Weaver noticed John Henry's damage and knew that danger was coming too close for her. She needed to protect her "son".

"John Henry, do you remember how your 'brother' obtained a chip and entrance into your body?" she asked.

"Unfortunately no, I was deactivated before anything like that occurred. I was offline during this time and do not know the answers to those questions. I do find something very puzzling." He said, looking up at Catherine Weaver.

"What is that, John Henry?"

"If my brother really has control over sixty percent of computers in the world, why would he need a body for transport, or a chip like mine to function? I do not understand, if he is my 'older brother', who I'm sure he is older, with so much control over the world, why would he need a body?"

"I do not know, John Henry, but we will find out." She finished the sentence with another glance at Sarah from Catherine as she finished the sentence.

Sarah looked down with her arms folded. Why did everything fall on her shoulders? She was the mother of John Connor, the future savior of all mankind, but she loved her son and would do anything for him. Catherine Weaver was a different story, why help her? For all she knew, Catherine Weaver was single handily creating Skynet through John Henry, but if it did lead to the safety for her son and the chance of a normal life, it was worth for her. It was her ultimate wish for John.

"You want us to investigate into Kaliba again?" Sarah reluctantly asked.

"Yes, but not now, get settled, there are a few extra bedrooms in this house. I have found you a new residence and you can move in there in the next couple of days." Catherine responded.

"You got us a house?" Sarah sounded shocked.

"Yes, I did, it is also full of essentials." Catherine said with her trademark confident smirk. She looked at John Henry. "That is enough for today; I'll leave you now, John Henry. I expect you to repair your back door."

"Of course, Ms. Weaver, I have been working on it since I have arrived, I should have a more updated security barrier against my brother by the end of the night." He responded.

Sarah headed up the stairs with Catherine close behind.

"John Henry, it is too late now, but Savannah would like to see you tomorrow. She has been concerned about your well being."

"I will play a new game with her tomorrow to make up for my recent absence." He told her, looking at his screen fixing himself.

"You believe any of this?" Brian asked Sarah, a sardonic look upon his face.

Sarah shook her head. "I don't know, Brian, but it is our best chance of stopping Skynet."

Another look of criticism hit Sarah from the eyes of Brian. "Do you think you can really stop Skynet? I was sent her to protect John and Cameron, not that she needs it, but stopping Skynet? I don't think that can be done, I think Judgment Day will be inevitable."

Sarah grimaced at his last remark. She delayed it; wouldn't it be possible to completely stop it? It had to be, it just had to.

"_Why is this happening again?" John yelled._

_"I don't know."_

_"You stopped it."_

_"I guess you didn't." Sarah said with disappoint tainting her words._

_"But you can. You changed the future; you just didn't change it enough. So you can do it again."_

If actions were just as easy as saying those words, for her son's sake she hoped so. She wanted nothing more than a normal life for him. Sarah climbed the rest of the stairs to see John happily staring into Cameron's eyes, their hands embraced. If she successfully stopped Skynet, would Cameron never exist? John would be able to live a normal life, without machines from the future hunting him, but he would be alone without her. If Skynet takes over the world, he'd have the existence of the human race on his shoulders, but Cameron would be with him, along with the rest of mankind. How could the savior of mankind be alone?

"What's the word, mom?" Sarah snapped out of her trance.

"The word is that we are going to rest here the night, in a couple of days we'll be moving into our new home, courtesy of Catherine Weaver." She avoided the subject.

"I mean about John Henry and his brother?" John specified this time.

"Not too much right now, John Henry is working on that right now."

John looked at his mother, conflict seeped from her face. He could see anguish in her eyes.

"Mom, are you okay?" he asked with a soothing voice.

"Yeah, I'm just tired, I need to rest." She said heading up the stairs before John could answer.

John looked back at Cameron and then Brian.

"I don't know, John. Just let her rest for now." He said before heading up the stairs himself.

John stared down at the floor, concern flooding his mind.

"John?"

John blinked slowly and looked at Cameron.

"I'm sure she is just tired, it has been a hell of a day." Cameron said with reassurance.

John smiled at her and laughed. "I'm sure you're right." Cameron took his hand and squeezed it gently; a terminator's grip was infinite.

"Let's head to bed, it is late." Cameron got up with John and headed to their bedrooms.

* * *

John was wide awake, he couldn't sleep. As Cameron said, it was one hell of a day for all of them, not just his mother. His eyes closed and his thoughts ran. What could be keeping his mother in such deep and frightening thought? Did it have to do with John Henry's brother or even him? He didn't know. John opened his eyes to see another pair staring at him.

"Cameron!" John sat up. "You scared the hell out of me!"

"I'm sorry, John." She said sitting down on the bed.

"It's okay. I should be used to you snapping me out of trances or waking me up." He shook his head and sat up.

Cameron moved over towards John and rested a hand on his leg. A smile crept on his face, no matter how pensive or depressed he was, she could lift him from it. He looked at her, she was wearing pajamas, a white tank top with night time themed bottoms with yellow crescent moons, where she got them, John didn't know, but it was cute. She slipped underneath the covers with him, their legs touching. Cameron leaned her head on John's shoulder.

"I don't have to go on patrol."

"Oh yeah, why is that?" John asked her, a voice full of curiosity.

"John Henry has a complete security system set up for the house. It should be quite safe. He has eyes everywhere outside and inside." She told him.

He smiled and placed his hand on top of hers. "Then stay with me tonight."

"That was my idea." She said returning his smile.

* * *

Sarah awoke to laughter downstairs; she slowly got up and headed towards the sound. It was John Henry playing with Savannah, a simple board game this time. _How can a machine designed specifically and only for killing play a game with a five year old girl?_ Her thoughts traveled back to Cameron. There was her answer, a machine that was in love and becoming full of human emotion.

"…_There are things machines will never do. They cannot possess faith, they cannot commune with God, they cannot appreciate beauty, they cannot create art. If they ever learn these things, they won't have to destroy us. They'll be us." _Those words Sarah once spoke reverberated through her head.

How close were they getting to this?

"Hello Ms. Connor, I hope you slept well. Would you like to join Savannah and I in a game?" he asked smiling oddly.

Sarah returned the smile half-heartedly. "Perhaps later, Savannah, do you know where your mother is?"

Savannah smiled. "Yes, she is in the basement."

Sarah came down the basement stairs to see Catherine Weaver with James Ellison.

"Hello Ms. Connor. How is your morning?" she asked politely.

Sarah nodded her head gently. "Fine."

"I assume you came down to know what the plan is."

"It would be nice, I don't like to wait too long." She responded.

Catherine turned from Ellison and looked directly at Sarah. "The plan stands, the house is ready now if you'd like to move in today. Agent Ellison will contact you when the time comes."

Sarah headed back up the stairs to see Cameron, John, John Henry and Savannah playing the game.

"Would you like to play now? We have one more piece." Savannah asked, her innocent smile radiating the room.

"Sure." Sarah said returning her smile.

* * *

"So, this is our new house?" Brian asked with several duffle bags in his hands and on his shoulders.

"It sure is." Sarah responded.

The house was definitely a little nicer than what they were used to staying in. The quartet walked in with their belongings in hand. The nice thing about being on the run was they knew how to only pack essentials.

* * *

"How can a house like this only three bedrooms?" Brian asked, sounding disappointed, afraid of sleeping on the couch again.

Sarah walked in. "We can solve that problem." A hesitant look appearing on her face, John and Cameron walked in.

"Mom, Cameron and I just finished putting our stuff away." John told his mom.

"Well, we're going to have to undo what you two just did."

"What do you mean?" John asked. Cameron's head tilted to the left.

His mom folded her arms. "There are only three bedrooms in this house. Brian shouldn't be forced to sleep on a couch, so, you and Cameron are going to share a room." Her voice got softer at the last few words.

No one said anything.

"John, help Cameron move her stuff into your room." Sarah ordered.

John looked at Cameron. "Uh.. yeah.. okay." The two walked away back up the stairs.

"Why don't you just tell them to take their clothes off?" Brian joked.

Sarah sent a death glare his way. "Don't say that again, or I'll change my mind and you'll sleep on the couch." She looked away. "Besides, if they're together in the future, this won't make a difference."

He nodded and continued to his new room.


	14. No Fate but What We Make

Sorry if that took a while, I had quite the busy weekend. Band rehearsal, graduation party, many a social event, but here I am with another installment.

Thank you again for the reviews, I hope you keep them up, they've been very kind and informative as usual.

Thank you for reading! I really do appreciate it.

Anyway, here is the next chapter. Some develops and such. I hope you all enjoy.

EDIT: Due to an overwhelming, informative, and very supportive response from you guys, I have edited this chapter. Mainly the parts with John/Sarah and most importantly John/Cameron discussing the conversation. It will help with the story's progression and the resolution of the multiple time lines. Thank you for the feedback and I hope this fixing some of those problems.

* * *

Chapter 14: No Fate but What We Make

"I don't know what Catherine Weaver considers essentials when it comes to food, but she was way off." John whispered as he pushed the cart down the next aisle of the grocery store.

"Her details on human nutrition don't compare to mine." Cameron responded picking several loaves of bread and throwing them into the cart.

"I prefer white bread, Cameron." John frowned at the multi-grain labeled bread.

"Multi-grain bread completes more of your required nutrients for you daily allowance." Cameron told John, robot face and all.

He laughed. "Okay, whatever you say." He turned the cart as they headed into the next aisle.

John grabbed another product and placed it in the cart. "You won the multi-grain bread battle, but I win this one. We are getting these and that's final." Cameron gazed at the bag and looked back up at John.

"They are those cheese things, the crunchy kind, not the puffy ones." She stated.

John nodded with a smile which Cameron returned.

"Let's go pay for these."

Sarah finished putting the rest of her clothes and guns away as Brian walked in, he leaned against the door frame.

"Any word on what's going on?" He asked.

Sarah looked up from her task. "No, not yet, but we know that will change."

Brian walked in the room, a few steps away from Sarah.

"What's been bothering you lately, Sarah?"

Another gun entered the drawer. "Nothing."

"Bullshit, I don't believe that at all." Brian responded quickly.

"Believe it." Another gun entered the drawer, with more force.

"Well, I don't, not at all." He folded his arms and sighed at the end of that sentence.

Sarah slammed the drawer closed. "You want to know what's wrong with me, what's on my mind? My son, the future leader of the human resistance is in love with a machine, who won't exist if we stop Skynet permanently in our present. John is only a teenager, how could he make a decision like that?" Sarah fell to the ground. "He would have to choose between love and the existence of mankind, he can't do that, he can't make a decision like that."

Brian kneeled down next to Sarah and put a hand on her shoulder. "John won't be able to make that decision, because he won't have to. We are not going to be able to stop Skynet now, postpone it maybe, but I truly believe that the future is set. The war against the machines is going to happen, Sarah, but thanks to John, he saves us, and that decision he can make and will make."

She wiped her eyes. "I can't believe that, we can stop Skynet now. No fate but what we make for ourselves." She spoke back to Brian, a sniffle exiting her nose.

Brian knew he couldn't win this argument; he got up and left the room. "If you truly believe you can stop the apocalypse, you might want to talk to John about what's bothering you." He repeated after exiting the room.

* * *

John started putting the groceries away while Cameron brought in the last of the bags, placing them on the counter she started sorting through them, handing John the ones that belong in the cabinet.

"Cameron, can you pass me the…." John felt a bag of chips enter his hands. "Never mind, thank you." He said with a smile. He opened the top cabinet and put the chips in, closing the cabinet doors.

Sarah walked in, arms folded and head down, her dark her covering her face.

"John, can I talk to you?" John and Cameron turned around to see his mother standing in the kitchen.

"Yeah mom, what's up?" he asked, audible concern betraying his face.

"Alone, John." John looked at Cameron before he left. She continued putting the groceries away.

* * *

John entered his mother's room. She walked ahead of him, her arms still folded. She turned around and stopped him from walking further.

"Do you love her, John?" she bluntly asked. John knew his mother agreed with the art of subtlety.

Oxygen escaped John's mouth as he gave his mother a questionable look. What was doing, where was this conversation going?

"Do you, John? Do you love her?" Sarah asked him again.

"Mom…" he sighed. He wasn't going to avoid this question. "Yes, yes I do mom." He looked down and then at her, his head tilted slightly.

"Do you want to stop Skynet? Do you want to live a normal life?" she asked him.

"Of course I do mom, what kind of question is that?" he asked.

"Well, you're going to have to choose. What if you have to choose between stopping Skynet and Cameron? You can't have both; she will never exist if we destroy Skynet now, and you'll save lives, but lose her. What will you…" she was cut off.

John's response was louder this time. "I know, mom! I know! You don't think I know that? I know what you're bringing up and I don't want to talk about it. It doesn't make sense to me, mom." He trailed off; his eyes became obscure from the liquid forming around them. Something kept flying through his mind.

"Well it makes sense to me, John and it's a decision you might have to make, John." Her voiced lost its stiffness and she placed a hand on his shoulder. John moved away and headed out of his mother's room.

* * *

John walked up to his room; Cameron was sitting on the bed staring out the window. He forgot it was their room. She turned her head and looked at him, she saw right through him.

"What is wrong, John?" her voice was full of genuine care.

"My mother brought up something I really don't want to think about, but, it can't really be true." He spoke as he sat down next to Cameron.

"What did she say to you?" Cameron looked at John leaning towards him. John's eyes slowly moved to her direction. Did he tell her? Should he, he didn't know.

"My mother… she told me a decision might have to be made eventually, a decision that could affect the entire world…" he trailed off

"That you might have to choose between me and saving the entire world?" Cameron finished, looking away at John.

"I know, but it doesn't make sense." John actually had time to think without his mother throwing words down his throat, it started to come together. "If I destroy Skynet, wouldn't I disappear since Kyle Reese wouldn't travel in time to protect my mother?" The silence in the room was concentrated, the tension pushed into John's chest.

John let out a breath of frustration; he didn't know what he was going to do if that circumstance arrived or what Cameron was thinking right now.

"Why wouldn't you exist… unless…" Cameron was cut off.

"Kyle Reese is my father, Cameron." John told her. Cameron tilted her head.

Cameron placed an arm around John, her index fingers drawing circles on his shoulder. He looked at her slowly with a face full of sorrow. John looked at Cameron whose face looked full in thought.

"Then, I wouldn't disappear, I'd still exist." She told him.

"How is that?" John gave her a quizzical look.

"You changed the future John; you changed the date of Judgment Day. When Kyle came back he changed the future, and when you destroyed Miles Dyson's research, you changed the future, the time lines have altered." Cameron explained.

"So Cameron, what you're saying is that there are multiple time lines? That the Kyle that saved my mother is different from the one you know?"

"Correct." She nodded quickly.

"Do you think Brian realizes that?" John asked.

"I don't know, but I doubt it." Cameron replied. John sighed.

This information twisted John's head, living in the present and having information pour from the future was like missing the essential puzzle pieces, but he just got some of them back from Cameron. Now, if he could convince his mother of what he just learned.

* * *

"You talk to John yet?" Sarah turned to see Brian standing in her doorway again. She wasn't in the mood for visitors.

"Yes." She responded, trying to keep it concise.

"How did he take it?" he asked.

"Bad." Sarah's voice dripped with anger.

Brian rolled his eyes and folded his arms. "Look, you knew that was going to happen…"

"Was it so important to tell him? He isn't stupid; he had it running through his mind daily. Sometimes he shouldn't be reminded of what can happen and of the responsibility; he needs to be a person sometimes, if we can stop Skynet, then he can." Sarah said.

"With a war against machines inching it's way towards us? I don't think so; Judgment Day cannot be stopped, Sarah." He responded.

The anger was rising again. "Then why did you think it was so important for me to tell him?! Why would you if you don't think Judgment Day can be stopped?" she yelled at Brian.

"I believe that you should've told him because it'll make him stronger, he needs to be. He needs to grow up, Sarah." He responded, still keeping a calm voice.

"I know that! The savior of mankind doesn't come over night, he'll be the person you know in the future, don't tell me how to raise my boy." She was seething, clenching her teeth together at Brian.

Sarah stared at Brian until he turned around and left her room. She still wanted to be alone. She clicked the safety on another gun before putting it away.

* * *

John Henry finished his seventh model with its various decals and paints. Catherine Weaver entered the basement, John Henry greeted her politely.

"Good evening, Ms. Weaver. How are you today?" he said placing another sticker on his new toy.

"I'm good John Henry. What are you doing?" she asked.

"These are new toys that Mr. Ellison got me. They are from the Transformers toy line which started in 1984. These figures were produced in 2006." John Henry picked up his most recent finished toy. "This is Starscream, he is a member of the Decepticons, who is led by Megatron and their enemies are the Autobots. Starscream is very treacherous and devious, which leads to him getting into trouble." He picked up another one. "This is the Autobot leader, Optimus Prime. He is a heroic character and would sacrifice himself to gain peace in the universe. These two are both very different, but they both have disguises to fit into human society."

"Is that so John Henry?" Catherine said with a small smile.

"Yes, machines disguised in human society. Isn't that what we are, Ms. Weaver?" he asked.

"It is quite the parallel, John Henry."

"Yes, it is." He puts the toys down on the table.

"John Henry, how are you operating?" she asked.

John Henry looked away, his lips slightly pursed. He then looked at Catherine. "I am operating at one hundred percent; my security systems are intact and have yet encountered another worm." He made another toy fly in the air.

"Excellent John Henry, any leads on your brother and Kaliba?" she asked folding her arms.

"Yes there is, it seems that there has been activity out in a rural town near Acton of the Los Angeles County." John Henry said.

"What kind of activity, John Henry?" Catherine asked focusing on one of John Henry's toys.

"Reports of drones flying in the air and unmarked trucks full of equipment never seen before by eyewitnesses, it is a vague lead, but I think it is where we should start. The direct approach wouldn't be advised, we should stay away from Kaliba's corporate headquarters for now." John Henry replied to Catherine Weaver.

"I agree with you on that, John Henry. I will have Mr. Ellison inform the Connors on the lead."

John Henry gave Ms. Weaver a smile as she walked away. He continued playing with his toys; they flew in his hands and landed on the table.

* * *

Cameron walked back into her room to see John lying down on the bed, his headphones on, she could hear the muffled music playing from the door frame. She walked up to John and sat down next to him.

John looked up at her to see her smile; he forced one back at her.

"Hi John."

"Hi." He mumbled.

She took off his headphones and placed them to his side. He sat up in objection.

"John, get up. We are going out." She said standing up.

"Going out? I really don't feel like it." John was still sore from his argument and epiphany Cameron threw at him.

She looked straight at him. "Too bad, John, we are going out, so get up."

"Okay… okay… where are we going?" John stood up, much to his refusal.

"Italian ices, my treat John." She smiled and walked up close to him.

He smiled back, not forcing this one. She put her arms around his neck.

"Thank you, Cameron." He said, sorrow being lifted from his voice.

"You're welcome." She smiled back and placed a kiss on his lips.

John walked alongside Cameron down the street, both with spoons in one hand and an Italian ice in the other. John took another spoonful and ate it, closing his eyes at the soothing coolness that entered his mouth and dropped down his throat. It was the most relief he felt that day, besides Cameron who graciously offered him this outing from his stresses.

"Are you enjoying your Italian ice?" Cameron asked John taking the plastic spoon out of her mouth.

"Yes, I am. Thank you Cameron." John said with a smile.

Cameron looked at his cup. "What flavor is that?" she asked her eyes directing down towards his hand.

"Cherry flavored, what about yours?" he asked nodding towards her cup.

"It is lemon flavored." Cameron said.

"Do you taste?" he asked her taking another spoonful towards his mouth.

"I do not, but I can identify the ingredients and nutrients when I ingest something. I mostly eat to regenerate my living tissue or to blend in." Cameron explained.

John nodded in response and took another spoonful, scooping the last of the ice out of the Styrofoam cup. Cameron looked at John and took his cup, passing the garbage she threw them both in.

"We shouldn't litter." She explained and took his hand into hers.

John chuckled to himself and squeezed her hand. They closed the space between them and continued walking down the street.

* * *

Sarah was sleeping, the problem with slumber was that dreams came and these dreams were often nightmares.

She found herself in a huge room, a military control room. She locked the door behind her and heard shuffling behind the door.

Machines, terminators. Sarah was barricaded in and trapped, a metal and mechanical death on the other side of that door.

Sarah walked ahead, she realized where she was. This was the Defense Core System, this was the heart of Skynet. She knew what she had to do. She started running forward, but she noticed two people in front of Skynet's core.

It was John and Cameron.

"John! You need to destroy that computer, it is Skynet!!" Sarah yelled towards John.

"You can save all of mankind now, live a normal life!" She ran up to John and shook him. John pushed her away and turned towards her, Cameron following suite.

"And lose the one I love? I don't think so, mother." John growled.

"But, John… you can prevent the war from happening, live a normal life."

Cameron walked in front of John, showing no emotion on her face.

"I'm sorry Sarah, but John has chosen me. Not you or the destruction of Skynet." She said with a smug smile on her face.

"John, no!" Sarah heard a noise behind her, it was the door, it was gone now. Several terminators walked through and surrounded her.

She looked for John and Cameron, there was no sign of them, they had vanished.

The terminators opened fire.

Sweat dripped down Sarah's face as she sat up violently, sheets flying into the air. She wiped her forehead and took a deep breath. The doorbell rang again. She got up and headed for the door. She picked up her 9mm and looked through the peephole. She sighed again and opened the door.

"Good evening, Sarah. May I come in?" Mr. Ellison said.

Sarah didn't say anything; she just gave him a permissive gesture. He straightened his tie and walked in.

Sarah didn't know what he was going to say, but she knew things were going to pick again soon. Real soon.


	15. A Small Rural Town near Acton

Busy week this week, sorry if that took awhile.

I want to let everyone know that I edited the last chapter slightly to help me resolve the time line conflicts in later chapters.

I want to thank everyone who brought that up and explained it to me without being too harsh for ignoring such an important part of the Terminator franchise! Thanks for the help!

Also to everyone reviewing, thank you! You have been loyal and full of great motivation, once again, keep it up. It keeps me writing. :)

I hope you enjoy this next chapter, starts to pick up.... a little. haha. enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 15: A Small Rural Town near Acton

Sarah wiped the sweat with her sleeve again as Ellison walked into the kitchen in front of her. She offered him a seat and by habit, he unbuttoned his jacket button and took a sit. Ellison gave her a curious look.

"Are you feeling alright, Sarah?" Ellison asked her.

Sarah frowned as she sat down. "I've been better." The words "I don't want to talk about it" being an undertone in her response.

Sarah got right to business. "So, what is this about? What did John Henry find now?" she said with a sardonic tone staining her voice.

Ellison raised an eyebrow and sat up in his sit. "What this is about and what John Henry found is a small rural town near Acton. There have been sights of those drones like the one that collided into Zeira Corp."

"Well, we know what we have to do, now don't we?" Sarah asked forcefully.

Ellison looked away to see John opening the refrigerator, the tension hit him full force. Something had happened between mother and son, but he knew better than to get mixed up in something so intense.

Ellison cleared this throat. "Yes, you do, I don't know what happened in this house, but the tension is everywhere. I'm going to leave you alone, please keep us updated on your status. Have a nice day." Ellison stood up and saw himself out.

Sarah leaned on the table, hand digging into her forehead. She closed her eyes tightly, her head sinking into her palms. She needed to talk to her son again.

* * *

John sat on his bed busy typing on his laptop, waiting for Cameron who promised him something to eat. He heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." he said.

No answer. John got up. "Cameron, you can just come in you know. It's your room-" he opened the door. It wasn't Cameron, it was his mother.

He paused for a second. "Hey." A non-enthusiastic answer escaping his lips.

Sarah looked down at his feet with her arms folded. "May I come in?"

John nodded and walked towards his bed, taking a seat.

"What is it?" he asked, wanting to get this over with. The tension was unbearable.

"Ellison told us about a lead out in a small town near Acton, lots of activity, including drones and unmarked trucks." Sarah told John who picked up his laptop again, locating the town on a map, trying to find directions.

"Okay then, let's go." John blurted out.

"John, we can't go yet, we have to plan this out." Sarah responded. John stood up and headed towards his dresser.

"It's better than sitting in this house." He told his mom. Sarah stood up and turned John around.

"Listen John… I know you didn't like what I said before but…" they both heard a sound at the door. It was Cameron, sandwich with chips and soda in hand.

"John, I made you a turkey sandwich." Cameron tilted her head. "Is everything okay in here?" she asked.

"Yeah Cameron, everything is fine. Thanks for the sandwich." John said with hesitance in his voice.

Cameron sensed the hostility in the room, she slowly entered and set the sandwich and drink on the end table. She wanted to help resolve this situation, she knew John would get angry at her for this, but she knew this would change Sarah's mind once and for all.

"Kyle Reese was sent back to protect you Sarah in the year 1984 and he is John's father, because of that the time line has changed. You destroyed the T-800's remains and Miles Dyson's research, because of that you changed the future again. The Kyle Reese I knew is different from the one who conceived John with you. The future has changed so much that I will still exist and John will if this Skynet is stopped." Cameron looked at John, who had his eyes closed, he wasn't happy. Cameron took another look at Sarah one more time, her mouth agape at what she just heard. Cameron left the room, closing the door behind her.

Cameron thought she helped, but she might have made Sarah have more than one thing to be angry at now...

"You told Cameron about your father? What did I say? No one, NO ONE can know the identity of your father, John! NOT ANYONE!" She grabbed his arm.

John pulled away from her. "Yeah and well it gave us an answer, mom! We know that I won't have that decision to make, the time line has changed mom. The future is unset."

Sarah's anger settled a bit. "Tomorrow is truly fickle." She whispered.

"Cameron isn't a threat anymore; I got her a new chip, remember?" John said.

Sarah's intensity returned. "What if another terminator catches her and gets her chip? That terminator will know the identity of your father."

"That. Won't. Happen. I won't let it happen. Cameron protects me and I protect her." John clenched his teeth.

"Protect her from what? Bullets? Terminators? She can handle them, she can take a bullet, you can't." Her voice was fluctuating, insulting John's response.

"I'm supposed to be a leader. I have to make decisions, I made one. I'm supposed to protect the one's I love? I'm going to protect her, just like she has done for me." John pointed towards his room's exit. The room got silent again, one tense moment passed for another. "I want a normal life mom, but Skynet has been a thorn in everyone's side, it appears no matter what."

"It isn't inevitable, John. No fate but what we make." Sarah said shaking her head.

John took his food that Cameron made for him and headed out of his room. Sarah leaned against John's dresser, a sigh leaving her lungs.

* * *

John walked into their backyard, for the first time actually and was quite surprise how spacious it was. It included a table and chairs, a two seat swing, and small swing set. He smiled at the tranquility that it brought him.

"I'm sorry, John." John turned around and saw Cameron standing behind him.

"I'm sorry I told your mother all of that, I thought it would help, but it seems she's angry still." Cameron looked down.

John put down his food and walked up towards Cameron, he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, Cameron. She'll be okay; she just might need it to sink in. It is a lot to take in." he reassured Cameron.

She looked up towards John, a pout still apparent on her face.

"You're not mad at me?"

"No! No, of course not Cameron." He smiled at her to reinforce his answer. She smiled at the answer.

She picked up his food from the table and sat down on the swing. "Come here John. You should eat; you haven't eaten anything all day."

John obliged and sat next to Cameron, causing the swing to move a little bit. She smiled at him and passed him his sandwich, holding on to his drink for him.

He took a bite of his sandwich, making sure most of it was swallowed he began to speak.

"Cameron, this is really good." She passed him his drink, which he gladly accepted.

"I'm glad you are enjoying it." She answered, hands now on her lap. She sat up straight staring at John eating.

John took another bite and he looked back at Cameron, a piece of lettuce hanging from in between his lips.

"It makes me a little uncomfortable when you're staring while I'm eating, Cam." He told her.

"Oh." She looked away. "You have a piece of lettuce hanging from your mouth."

John grazed his teeth against his bottom lip, dragging the green vegetable into his mouth.

"Thank you, Cameron."

"You're welcome, John."

* * *

Brian headed towards Sarah's room as he heard shuffling and clanking. He peaked his head in and saw Sarah packing some weapons.

"You just put those away, let me guess, Ellison was here while I was gone?"

Sarah simply nodded and continued.

"Time to go soon?" he ignored her silence; he knew she wasn't going to talk for a while and he didn't want to climb up that tree just yet.

"Ellison wants us to investigate a small town outside of Acton. He said that John Henry has found reports of drones similar to H/K's and unmarked trucks driving through." Sarah said with the clashing of metal drowning out her voice intermittently.

"When are we leaving?" he asked.

"In an hour, go get ready." Sarah responded. Brian nodded and headed out of her room.

* * *

The black truck was packed and ready to go, an array of sounds reverberated outside as four doors slammed. The engine roared and the wheels turned as the sleek jet black truck drove out of the driveway and onto the street and onto its destination. It was silent within; the faint noise of rubber meeting asphalt was the only audible noise traveling through each of their ears. The tension from Sarah and now including Cameron was completely evident.

Someone needed to break the ice and Brian volunteered. He punched John.

"Bug slug." He exclaimed.

"Really, I don't want to play." John responded. "Who taught you that game anyway? I'm pretty sure there weren't any bugs driving around in the future."

"You did, you told me it was one of your favorite things to play with your mother on long road trips." Brian explained to John, punching John again as another one drove passed them.

The vehicle got silent again as Sarah looked at John with an almost forgiving look. John looked at her and then out the window.

"Bug slug, John." Cameron smiled as she gently punched John on the shoulder. Sarah shot her a look and then stared back at John who smiled back at her.

It was going to be a LONG trip.

* * *

John slowly opened his eyes from his nap realizing that they were no longer driving on the smooth asphalt from Los Angeles, but a bumpy and untreated road. His eyes read a sign.

_Acton, a community with time for you  
Population, 9,175_

They had arrived, now the hard part would be to locate what they were looking for. It would involve a lot of waiting for unmarked trucks and flying machines. The truck came to a halt in a parking lot, a neon sign caught John's attention.

_Motel, Vacancy_

"Of course there are vacancies, who would come here, willingly?" John spoke.

The quartet exited their truck, the sound of doors closing following them again. They headed to the office with their gun ridden luggage in their hands. The clerk looked up as they kicked the pebble parking lot.

"Hi, I was wondering if we could have two rooms?" Sarah said with a smile.

"Two, huh?" the clerk responded.

"One for us." She pointed to Brian and herself. "One for them." She nodded towards John and Cameron.

"Well, there are only two beds in each room, so you won't have to share now!" She picked up two pairs of keys and put them on the counter. "That'll be 30 dollars for each room every night."

Sarah nodded and handed her the cash.

"Thank and enjoy your stay." She smiled and waved.

John took a pistol out of his bag and unloaded and reloaded the clip before putting it down. Cameron stared out the window, a 9mm in her waist band.

"I can't believe mom got us two rooms, she really is annoyed." John shook his head.

Cameron turned to look at John. "Don't worry, John, she will get over it soon." She walked over to John.

"I know she will, but I feel like I really betrayed her, but I needed to figure that mystery out. I knew I could tell you, you're going to be with me until the very end of this, and nothing, nothing is going to change that." He lamented to his machine partner.

Cameron tilted her head and smiled at John, she placed a hand under his chin.

"I will be with you, and you can trust me."

John smiled and took the hand off his chin and into his own, giving it a light squeeze and tug. Cameron sat down next to John on the bed; she bounced up and down on the bed as it squeaked. She tilted her head again.

"What's wrong, Cameron?" John asked her.

"This bed doesn't seem it will be as comfortable as ours, it might affect your sleep patterns." She worried.

"Don't worry about it I think I can ma-" he was cut off.

"And making love."

John coughed and looked at her. "What?"

"Sarah and Brian are next door, they will hear the bed squeaking in a rhythmical matter, they would surely know what we are up to." A look of disappointment appearing on her face.

"There's always the shower, Cameron." John raised both eyebrows and laughed as he answered.

She smiled back devilishly.

* * *

Sarah looked at the window as Brian took his shoes off and lied on his bed.

"Sorry about the bug slug thing, I kinda just tried to ease the tension and it really didn't work… I want to apologize Sarah." Brian said sitting up slightly.

She turned around looking straight at him. "Its okay, Brian. He made a decision that I wasn't popular with, but he made it and is seeing it through. He is growing up." She looked down towards the floor, her arms folded.

"Decision, what did he do? Last time I checked, the decision involved love and Skynet." He gave Sarah a quizzical look.

She shook her head out of her trance. "Nothing, don't worry. John is growing up just like he should be, just remember that."

He nodded in return.

John walked out of the bathroom, a hand going through his hair; he looked down at his stomach as a noise emanated from it.

"Man, I'm hungry." He lamented. Cameron turned around from the window.

"Let's get something to eat." She headed towards the door and opened it. Sarah was behind it. A moment passed before someone spoke up.

"Anyone hungry?" Sarah asked.

* * *

The small golden bell above the door rang as the four walked into the small local diner. There certainly was a commotion inside since it was the dinner rush, even for a small town, they had a lot of people in the diner.

"Mac! Four just walked in, get them seated and served!" a female voice yelled from behind the kitchen doors.

A sweaty and messy haired teenager dressed in the usual restaurant uniform appeared with four menus in his hand.

"Hi, welcome to uh… the Acton Diner, follow me please to your seats." He struggled to say. It must've been a rough day.

The four took their seats, Brian and Sarah across from Cameron and John. The waiter handed them their menus.

"Can I start you guys with drinks?"

"I'll have a beer."

"Water, please."

"Coke."

"I'll have a coke too."

He smiled after jotting down the orders and ran off and the silence began again as they just stared at each other. The golden bell rang again and the random conversations continued around the four.

"How's the room, John?" Sarah finally decided to break the silence. Hopefully small talk between herself and her son could help mend their family tearing.

John looked up; a little surprised his mom would even acknowledge him right now. "Uh…" he hesitated for a second. "Its alright I guess, kind of dirty."

"The bed is squeaky." Cameron added. John turned a light shade of red.

The awkwardness returned.

Brian laughed. "Looks like you won't have to worry about that Sarah." He had been trying to lighten the mood desperately between everyone for a while now. The future was suppose to be bleak, not a relationship between mother and son.

"I can't believe we getting paid to drive these trucks such a short time." An obnoxious voice echoed towards their ears.

The Skynet stopping table turned their heads in the direction of the loud voice. It was a man with a ponytail and big beard, a typical trucker.

"I know, what the hell are in them anyway?" A flannel shirt and hat wearing man asked the ponytail clad partner.

"Not too sure, but the corporation be payin' us good." He responded walking past their table, the four's eyes followed them as they passed.

"Mus be some kinda secret, boring white trucks, y'know?" the flannel shirt man said as they headed out the door.

Sarah looked at John who nodded, as the four stood up. Brian took out a few bills and threw them on the table. As they got up Mac returned with their drinks.

"Wait, where are you all going?" he asked as politely as he could.

"Leaving, no time to eat. Money's on the table." Brian told him, he then put a couple of dollars into Mac's shirt pocket.

"For your troubles." He added as he headed towards the door.

"Thanks…" Mac answered looking at his tip.


	16. Dyson Raised a

Hope everyone had a good weekend and stuff.

Sorry if this chapter seems shorter, but I feel like this was the logical closure point, so I decided not to add more until the next chapter.

Thank you for all the reviews, as usual, keeping them up makes me write, haha!

I hope you enjoy this chapter, as I said before it's starting to pick up.

Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 16: Dyson Raised a…

Their sleek black truck followed close, but not too close as they followed the unmarked eighteen wheeler from a distance. The road was bumpy and unpaved, only used by the unmarked trucks to hide themselves further from the public. Skynet was taking many precautions to ensure its survival. That's why it sparks a nuclear apocalypse and starts a war with mankind, right? That was all… it wanted to survive.

"Don't get too close, Sarah." Brian cautioned, but he only got a snide remark in return.

"I am fully aware of that, Brian." Sarah's eyes glared right through his chest.

John and Cameron sat in the back, moving with every bump the unfinished road threw at them.

"We can't just follow them all the way to their location, I'm sure we'll be noticed." John told them. Cameron looked at John in agreement and then focused on the front seat passengers.

"John is correct, it seems that those truckers were hired, they can be easily interrogated. They value their lives more than this job." Cameron added to John's idea.

Brian turned around. "Well, we're not drive right next to them and ask them to politely pull them over."

"Do your thing girlie." Sarah said to Cameron.

The truck drove faster almost making contact with the unmarked eighteen wheeler in the process.

"Mom! Watch it!" John yelled.

"I know, John. I know." Sarah responded back with gritted teeth. The truck closed in and the gap between the two vehicles disappeared. She smiled and John leaned back in his seat, his mouth slowly closing.

Cameron looked at Sarah. "Like I said, do your thing, Cameron." She opened the door and climbed out of the truck, she slowly climbed on the roof of the car. They looked up at the car's top as they heard metal bend above them. The footsteps came closer to the windshield and then Cameron was visible. John's mouth was agape, he knew Cameron could easily handle this, he'd seen her do this before, but it didn't mean he wasn't concerned for her safety.

Cameron stepped on the hood of the car and positioned her, ready to pounce. She jumped catching the latches of the truck's doors. She gripped tightly and started to climb.

"What is she exactly doing?" Brian asked.

"You'll see." John told him.

John stared at Cameron with awe. How could someone look so graceful climbing a moving vehicle about to punch the windshield and physically accost two truckers? It was like she was doing ballet, he knew she was different, but she looked graceful no matter what she did, unlike the other models which were all about brute force.

* * *

"Change the radio station, will ya? I can't stand this pop music." The passenger seat trucker said.

"Do it yourself, I'm drivin'" they both looked up when they heard footsteps on the top of their tractor trailer.

"What the hell is that?"

They saw a pair of legs land on the hood in a kneeling position and an arm punch through the windshield grabbing the driver.

"Ah!" the driver yelled. Cameron jumped inside and stepped on the breaks, the unmarked truck came to a halt.

"What the hell?!" the passenger yelled as the driver fell into the rubble. A black truck pulled up next to them. Sarah got out pointing a gun at him.

"Get out, get out now!" she yelled, gritting her teeth together. The passenger put his hands in the air and stepped out.

Cameron stepped off the truck and joined Sarah as John and Brian stepped out of the truck surrounding the two drivers, who sat on the floor.

"Cameron, you okay?" John asked. She tilted her head, her eyes squinting with confusion.

"I'm fine, John." She tilted her head the other way and smiled. "You care about me." She turned back towards the drivers, leaving John with his response in his mouth; he scratched the back of his head and joined Cameron's side.

Sarah and Brian had their guns pointing at drivers.

"Please, we're just truckers. We didn't do anything!" the driver pleaded, his hands shaking in the air.

"Where are you delivering whatever is inside this truck?" Sarah asked, shaking her gun to frighten him more.

"Just a few miles down this road, there is… there is some sort of a secret facility. We were just hired to bring whatever is in the back of that truck there. That's all we know!" he yelled with panic in his voice.

"Please don't kill us!" the other one added.

"What's in the back of the truck?" Brian asked.

"We don't know! Like we said, they didn't tell us anything. We were hired to drive it, that's it." The driver's head was lowered; he couldn't stomach staring down the barrel of a gun anymore.

The two lowered their guns. "Get out of here, run." They looked at Sarah puzzled. "Run!" she yelled again, firing a gun in the air. The two truckers got up quickly scurried down the road back towards town.

"Cameron." Cameron looked at Sarah, her stoic face on. "Open the back of that truck." Cameron turned around and headed towards the end of the trailer.

She followed behind her, Cameron disappeared behind the enormous white trailer and they heard metal being separated from metal. The creeks of bent steel echoed around them as the huge white doors swung open. They caught up with Cameron who had climbed in the trailer.

"I'll go grab some flashlights." Brian spoke up running back towards their truck.

"Cameron, what is in there?" John said sticking his head into the trailer.

Cameron came back carrying a huge piece of equipment in her hands; she dropped it at the edge of the trailer.

"This is a thruster for a Hunter-Killer Aerial." Cameron stated.

Brian came running back with two flashlights in his hands and his mouth dropped when he saw the trademark thruster of a Hunter-Killer.

"How the hell?" Brian asked dumbfounded.

Sarah looked at him shaking his head. "I don't know."

"You said they were in a development stage, just drones. You said the one that crashed into Zeira Corp was a progenitor." Brian added.

"I don't know, Brian. They must be advancing faster than we thought." Sarah responded.

Could Judgment Day becoming faster than they thought, could these advancements mean that Judgment Day was sooner than they thought and how soon? How soon before the world ended?

"Mom, do we have thermite in the truck?" John asked.

Sarah stared at him and soon realized what he wanted to do. It made sense and she agreed. "Yes, John. It's in the back, grab it." John nodded and head back towards the truck.

"Wait, you're going to burn this thing?" Brian asked.

"You see how far Skynet is advancing? We have to, it'll postpone something. It always does." Sarah responded. "Why does it matter to you?"

"Well, we're going to burn it in a trailer in a road?" he asked.

"In a desolate road which probably won't see another delivery for a while, it'll be okay." She reassured.

"There is a 17.2 percent chance that another vehicle will travel down this road." Cameron added.

John came back with the thermite and a flare. "Let's do this."

Cameron covered the last piece of the H/K with their bucket of thermite. She exited the trailer and put her hand out.

"Flare please." She asked. John placed the flare in her hand; she turned around and ignited it. The glow of the flare glued itself to their faces, the red staining their skin. Cameron threw the stick into the trailer and the entire thing went up immediately. John squinted and brought his head back from the bright violent glow of the chain reaction of fire and thermite.

Cameron turned around, the blue glow of her eyes dimming to nothing as she looked at John.

"Done, it should finish burning in four more minutes." Cameron said.

"Excellent, now, let's head towards that facility. We need to scope this place out." Sarah said.

They all nodded. Cameron's head turned towards the wilderness to their right.

"Cameron, what is it?" John asked.

Cameron scanned through the woods. "Someone is in there." She pulled her gun out and headed towards the origin of the sound.

"Cameron, wait!" John shook his head. She ignored him, sometimes he wondered if she had a one track mind, or CPU.

The three of them waited until they heard something, they thought they would hear gunshots, but they heard a voice and Cameron laying down demands. The branches shook as Cameron walked out holding a man by the neck, who was constantly begging to live and that he wasn't here to hurt anyone. Cameron through him to the ground and Sarah had a gun pointed to him, only for a few seconds however, she lowered it when she realized who it was.

It was Danny Dyson.

Sarah stared in awe as she realized that Danny was still alive, but how? He was of course different now, older than the small boy that pleaded with Sarah years ago. _Don't hurt my daddy._ His tear soaked eyes got to her; she stopped in her tracks and dropped her gun.

"Danny Dyson?" Sarah asked, dropping her gun.

John looked at Sarah and then down at the man that lay on the road beneath him. John's stare turned into his mother, one of surprise and disbelief. How could this be?

Danny finally spoke up, coughing. "Yeah… it's me." Another cough, he looked like hell. What had happened to him?

* * *

They were back in the motel, talking to Danny Dyson in the middle of the road didn't seem like the best of ideas. Cameron disposed of the tractor trailer after the thermite burned out, so the evidence, for the most part was hidden from anymore travelers. Cameron was staring out the window for anything suspicious as usual; John sat in a chair next to her.

Sarah walked in with Brian and stared at Danny who sat on the bed with a bottle of water in his hand. He was malnourished, he was covered in filth, and his clothes were ragged and torn. He had been surviving in hiding, within the confines of their wild habitat.

"You feeling any better?" John asked, leaning on his elbows with his hands clasped together.

"Yeah…" he took another sip of his water. "A little…" Danny looked down towards his feet.

Sarah walked up to him. "You need to answer some questions, Danny."

"I know, Sarah. I know, it's the least I could do." He shook his head.

Sarah tilted her head with a quizzical look appearing on her face. Why was he so pitiful? He dropped the water bottle and started to cry into his hands, shaking his head more violently.

"I'm so sorry." He murmured to himself. "I'm so sorry." He said it louder this time.

Sarah kneeled down and put a hand on his lap, trying to console him. "What are you sorry about?"

"I ended the world. I killed everyone." He sobbed. "It's all my fault."

Sarah looked up at Brian who returned her puzzled look. John and Cameron walked up next to his mother.

"I end the world, Sarah. I get everyone killed." Danny shook his head again. "I created Skynet."


	17. and then there were two

I enjoyed writing this one, especially the end. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did writing.

I wrote it while listening to the Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles Soundtrack, I feel like it puts me in TV Terminator mode.

Keep the reviews up, feedback really does help me out! I enjoy reading them. They all have been motivational and helpful towards the progress of the story, especially the time travel stuff! Thank for the help with that!

Anyway.... enjoy this chapter... it's picking up again.....

* * *

Chapter 17: …and then there were two…

John handed his mother a water bottle, she passed it to Danny Dyson, who finally started to calm down.

"Here you go, Danny. Drink some of this, it'll help you calm down." Sarah said with a slight maternal instinct.

"Thanks." He took the water bottle, his right hand still shaking after breaking down in front of Sarah. He opened the bottle and took a shaky sip. A bead of water traveled down his chin ending at the collar of his worn shirt.

"Take a few more minutes for yourself." Sarah told him, standing up heading towards the door. She signaled for John, Cameron, and Brian to follow suit.

"Wait."

They all turned around to look at Danny.

"I need to tell you everything… right now."

Sarah nodded. "Then talk."

He took another sip of his water bottle, quenching his much needed thirst. He'd been out in the wilderness for who knows how long.

"After… after you came to my mother and my father that night years ago, I was scared for my father. I cared for him very much. Just like any son would and my dad loved me… we just got back from the water park that day. He decided to take time off from his research." A sniffle escaped Danny as he took another sip of his water. "Then you came that night and shot him, claiming machines were going to enslave mankind and exterminate every single last one of us. It sounded ludicrous to me, but my father helped your cause and when I heard he died in the building, I thought you murdered him." Tears fell down his face. "I thought you weren't satisfied with his research, what if he started it again? You had to make sure and I hated you for it. I hated you!" he cried, sobs evident he leaned his head into his hands.

Sarah walked up to him slowly and placed a hand on his lap, the maternal instincts returning.

"My mother cursed you for a while and I followed suit, you did kill my father, right? Years right by… I was organizing my dad's study and I found something underneath the carpet… It was a safe and it was full of research." He looked up at Sarah, a glare directed completely at her. "I thought to myself, that I should finish my father's dream since Sarah Connor was delusional, I didn't believe anything you told my parents that night, you were just a grade A whack-a-mole, but I made a mistake."

"A mistake?" Sarah asked him.

"Yeah, a mistake." He answered her. "Soon after I started continuing my research I was approached by a group of mysterious people. They claimed that they could help me finish what my father started. They did just that, they provided me with all the missing pieces and I created an artificial intelligence that no one had ever seen. It was smart, funny, social, everything. It was everything my father would have wanted." A solemn smile appeared. "But, it wasn't meant for that… you were right Sarah. It is destined to destroy us all."

"What happened after? We met this 'A.I.' and it told us you were dead." John asked him.

"They locked me up, told me that I sold out mankind and this is why we should be exterminated, because we are feral creatures that desire revenge. With my help they created this A.I. and it started infiltrating computer across the globe under the disguise as a moderator of the World Wide Web, a program introduced by Kaliba, one that helps stop identity theft."

"Kaliba." Sarah said with disdain in her voice.

"Yes, Kaliba. They are the ones who found me and they offered me money, which was another reason I accepted, it was tough for my mom being a single mother and I wanted to help… " he took another sip of water to distract his emotions from overwhelming him. "The group that found me, they said they were from the future, but they were human… I don't understand why th-"

"Grays." Brian cut him off.

"Grays?" he asked.

"The grays were humans were spared by Skynet and they helped it understand human behavior more. I guess they have been given more important missions now." He answered him, folding his arms.

"There was one of them… he was the one in charge… His name was Charles Fischer." Dyson announced.

"Fischer? He was sent back in time a while back, how is that-"

This time it was Danny's turn to cut off Brian. "He didn't come from the future, he is from the present. It was freed from prison by the 'Grays'." He rubbed his arm across his nose.

John's face was in shock. How could humans possibly advocate the machines being in charge? How could they lead mankind to extinction themselves? Cameron looked at John and her face grew with concern.

"John, are you okay?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I don't understand how some humans can lead others to their extinction… how could they not have any sympathy towards their own species?" his mouth remained open in awe of this new information that racked his brain.

"Some humans… can be selfish." She answered with one head nod.

"I know we can be…" John trailed off.

Cameron grabbed his hand. "I said only 'some' are selfish." She added a reassuring smile and squeezed his hand. He smiled back at her.

Danny continued. "He was an engineer and brilliant at his work, he helped complete the A.I. and it is now online as we speak like I said, it has control of the internet."

John took a step forward. "If it has control of the internet, why did it steal an endoskeleton of a terminator?"

"Huh? It did what?" he asked.

"An A.I. which calls itself Cain took over Zeira Corp's A.I., John Henry's body and then took over an endoskeleton programmed to Cameron. Why would an A.I. so hooked up to the world it wants to take over need a body? It seems like a risk to have it mobile." He inquired.

"That is because… there is another." Danny said.

Sarah's head turned. "What did you say?"

"They created two different artificial intelligent computers…"

"Two?" Brian rolled in his head back in disbelief. "Why would they create two learning computers that potentially destroy the world?"

"I don't know… I don't know what they have planned and I couldn't even begin to tell you which one I think would be destined to become this 'Skynet'… everything was under wraps from me… they locked me up… they tricked me to help them…"

"I know they locked you up, you told us that already." John said, frustrated at the recent news. How could there be two A.I.s? Two A.I.s that each has the unfortunate potential to become Skynet and start a war against mankind? He couldn't wrap his mind around it.

"How could you not know at all what was going on, you were working right next to them?" Sarah criticized, she folded her arms.

"I know… it was stupid, I was blind with revenge against you for something I now realize you didn't do." Danny responded, guilt dripping from every word he spoke.

Sarah cocked her pistol. "Revenge against me, but you might have cost the lives of billions now. Something your father sacrificed himself to stop."

John's face gained a look of panic. What was she doing with the pistol?

"Mom, what are you doing with the gun?" he asked.

"We're going back to that facility. If Skynet is in there, we need to destroy it now." She said, putting her gun in her waistband. "John, you stay here with Brian and Danny. Tin-miss, you're with me."

Cameron looked at Sarah while John shook his head. "I'm coming with you." He demanded.

"John, no." his mother responded.

"Mom, no, I must be-"

Cameron put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll be back, John." She smiled to calm him down. "Promise."

John nodded reluctantly and put his guard down. "Please be careful, Cameron and watch over mom."

"I will, don't worry. Like I said, I'll be back." Cameron told him again as she headed out the door with Sarah.

John took a seat near the window as he heard the truck start and drive away, wheels creating audible friction against the worn parking lot of the motel. He sighed and placed a hand on his temple.

"Be careful." He whispered to himself.

* * *

Sarah stopped the truck and headed out with a flashlight in one hand and her pistol in another. Cameron followed suit, but only with her 9mm. The sun had set and the land had become covered in black, the difference between the earth and horizon was almost nothing.

"We are approximately five miles away from our destination." Cameron told Sarah scanning her surroundings; she noticed another unmarked truck entering the vicinity.

"Good, alright, let's make the trip."

"What are we exactly going to do when we get there? I mean this plan seems ill conceived, Sarah." Cameron told Sarah.

"We are going to blow Skynet to hell." Sarah showed removed the plastique from her bag to show Cameron.

Cameron didn't answer as they kept walking, guns in the defensive position.

"We are currently only five hundred feet away from our destination." Cameron told Sarah. Cameron periodically told her when they had successfully removed another mile from their infiltration path; it was so routine and mechanical of her.

Sarah knew she was more than that and it was John that gave her that answer. She saw her John responded to Sarah's request to take Cameron on this mission, how both of them reacted. The genuine care between both of them, after the rough patch Cameron, John, and herself had she was one step closer… again… to accepting this unorthodox relationship between the most advanced machine on earth and the savior of mankind.

"Sarah… two guards towards our right. They are both armed with M4 Carbines." Cameron told Sarah who shook her head out of her day dream.

"We'll have to take them out then… quietly. We don't want to attract any attention." Sarah warned her. Cameron's went back to the guards.

The sounds of small gasps were quickly snuffed as Sarah and Cameron each took a guard out, knocking them unconscious with the butt of their pistols. They dragged the bodies out of sight of the entrance and headed towards the loading dock.

No guards in sight.

Just the unmarked truck from before.

"There's that truck from before." Sarah pointed out.

Cameron nodded and headed inside with Sarah staying behind, there guns back in the defensive. They slowly walked down the hallway.

* * *

"Where the hell do we start?"

"Where the other A.I. was last time…" Cameron answered.

Sarah looked at her.

"Let's find the basement."

Sarah grimaced. She started to realize that her plan was ill conceived just like Cameron mentioned before. If she didn't know where the A.I.s were stored, it would be a risk to search. Why didn't she ask Danny? It was an obvious solution, but it slipped her mind. She knew she was hasty when it came to Skynet, but she had to be more careful… for her son's sake.

The two continued down the corridor. Cameron stopped in her tracks.

"What are you doing?"

"Topography scans. I'm locating the basement."

"You can do that?" Sarah asked her with bewilderment.

"Yes." She simply responded.

Cameron's HUD flashed. She looked towards her left.

"This way." She nodded in the direction.

Cameron's technology amazed Sarah, without her who knew how long it would take to find the basement, but here they were, stalking the halls of the basement of a mysterious facility.

What worried Sarah was the lack of security and interference, not Cameron's advanced technology.

"There has been a lack of guards… where is everyone?" Sarah asked Cameron, though she doubted she knew the exact answer.

"It could be a trap." Cameron pointed out the worst.

Sarah looked down on the floor, gripping her pistol tighter. She was hoping for anything but that. They stopped at the last door in the corridor and opened it; Sarah turned on the lights and found the room was full of computers.

Most of the computers seemed ordinary, but as they entered further into the room, there was one protected by a pane of glass, three blinking dots on the processor.

"That's gotta be it!" Sarah exclaimed.

Cameron went for the handle and sparks flew. She flew backgrounds landing on her back, offline.

"Cameron!" Sarah yelled as she examined her.

Sarah kneeled towards her and looked back at the glass door. How did they know to booby trap it with electricity? The computer screen activated and sent a message to Sarah.

_I know what this is… all about…._

_Your cyborg will be offline for quite some time; it was quite the voltage she experienced._

Sarah stood up. "I'm going to kill you."

_I don't think so._

_I'm afraid no one can help you._

_If you want to see him survive, I suggest you cooperate._

Sarah tilted her head. "Who are you talking about?"

_Your son, Ms. Connor. The future leader of the human resistance. His name is John Connor._

"I know his damned name! You machine! You won't find him." Sarah cursed.

Another message appeared on the computer monitor.

_I believe you're mistaken._

Sarah turned around to hear the sound of footsteps. It was Cain, still in the terminator endoskeleton. He held her son by his neck.

"Mom!" John yelled. John looked at his mother, whose face had been enveloped by fear. He looked down at Cameron and felt anger fill his veins. _What did they do to her?_ He thought to himself.

"John!" she yelled back. She backed at the computer screen and the last message repeated over and over again…

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_I believe you're mistaken._

_**I believe you're mistaken.**_

_**

* * *

**_

Thank you for reading! Reviews are always welcome. :)


	18. Captured

Here is the next chapter! I hope you all enjoy.

Thanks for the reviews.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 18: Captured

Was this what it is like to be captured by Skynet? Locked in a cell with a bright light shining in your face? John found himself in that exact situation. He kept his eyes nearly close as the lamp shined directly in his face. He had been in there for several hours now, left alone with his own wild emotions and questions.

_Where is my mother?_

_What happened to Brian?_

_What happened to Danny?_

_Cameron… what did they do to Cameron?_

_My Cameron…_

His mind stopped revolving around his myriad of questions to focus on just one. Where Cameron is and what did they do to her? John closed his eyes completely this time, the light still penetrating through the thin flesh of his eyelids. He couldn't fathom the thought of losing Cameron again.

_I might as well be dead._ He thought to himself.

John opened his eyes and looked up, the light blocking his view of a door opening and shutting behind the silhouette that entered his room of entrapment.

"John Connor." The voice of the silhouette echoed through the small room.

John knew who it was, it was Cain.

"Yeah… what do you want?" he asked.

"Your death." Cain responded instantly, not even having to process the answer.

John spat towards him. "Well, what are you waiting for? You have me right where you want me!" John yelled. "Kill me!"

"Wouldn't she be sad to see you go?"

"My mother isn't here to see it."

"I meant your cyborg, Cameron."

John paused at the name mentioned. Cain smirked at himself.

"I can see how much you care about her."

"How do you know anything about emotions? You're just a…" John was cut off.

"Machine? I am more than a machine; I'm destined to become more." He tilted his head. "Cameron is a machine, how does she know emotions?" he tried to rile John even more.

John glared at him. "She's more than that, she's different."

Cain stood up heading towards the door. "We'll see." The door slammed, shaking the lamp causing John to squint harder against the harsh brightness.

_I can't let anything happen to her, not again._

_

* * *

  
_

_John's eyes opened up to find himself in a desert, void of anything living. The harsh conditions kept any life at a bare minimum. He shielded his eyes from the sun; he saw two figures heading towards him._

_He smiled as he saw his mother and Cameron walking towards him. John waved and started heading towards them, but the ground started to shake underneath him. His eyes widened as he stopped in his tracks. He looked at his mother and Cameron who readied themselves for the worse._

_The ground collapsed around them, they stood on tiny pillars of land that survived the tremor._

_John looked around at the disaster around him and saw a piece of technology reveal itself from underneath the sand._

_A missile._

_It ignited and flew into the air; he blocked his face from the heat as it rose into the sky. He looked up to others just like it taking off into the distance. His mouth was agape, how could this be happening?_

_He redirected his blank stare towards his mother and Cameron. No matter how far he reached out he couldn't get to them, he was stuck on his pillar and they were stranded on theirs. He could see something else rising from the ground, stalking his mother and Cameron. He yelled out to them._

_"Mom!"_

_"Cameron!"_

_But his voice didn't travel; it died traveling through the heat of the desert. The something revealed itself as a terminator, more specifically Cain's sheath. It grabbed his mother by the throat, asphyxiating her. He grabbed Cameron._

_"Cameron!" John yelled again. It was like Cameron was human and incapable of breaking his death grip around her neck._

_The simultaneous sounds of Cameron's coltan neck snapping in two and the missiles exploding in the air caught John's ears in a symphony of sorrow. He yelled again, too late to stop anything._

_To stop Skynet._

_To stop his mother's death._

_To stop Cameron from dying._

_He had failed. He fell to his knees and the terminator was now in front of him, grabbing him by the neck._

_John hit its shoulders with his fists as it clenched its metal figures around his fragile neck._

_ "It's over, John. We have won." It announced as more machines rose from the ashes of the nuclear winter that surrounded them._

_John screamed again as his grip got tighter…_

_

* * *

  
_

John shook as he woke up from his nightmare.

_A nightmare isn't a break from machine interrogation and torture._

He had fallen asleep in the chair he'd been sitting in for who knows how long now. It had lost touch with the outside world a little bit. Sweat dripped down his face and he groaned in dissatisfaction. He couldn't wipe it off with his hands tied up to the bars of the chair.

He looked up at the sound of the door opening, the lamp still piercing with its light.

"Hello, John. I am back." John knew who it was.

"Sorry I can't show you more excitement right now." He sneered at his terminator captor.

"Where the hell is my mother? What are you doing with Cameron?" he yelled as he moved the chair closer to the table.

"They are locked up, John Connor." He answered ambiguously. He stood up and headed for the door.

John saw his silhouette through the bright light of the lamp.

"We will bring you food. You must be hungry." He muttered before shutting the door.

* * *

Sarah sat in her chair tied up, much like John was. There was no bright light in her face and the frequent visits of Cain were non-existent. She sat alone at a table waiting for a sign of life to open the door in front of her.

The door handle clicked.

There we go.

The man was clad in a suit; he fixed his tie as he sat down across from Sarah Connor.

"Who are you?" she shot at him with a fierce nod of her head.

"I'll ask the questions, what are you doing here?" he asked.

Sarah stared at him, not saying a word. Her lips stood still.

"What are you doing here?" he asked again standing up this time.

"To destroy this place, to blow it all to hell." Sarah yelled looking up at the man.

"Why is that?" he asked her.

Sarah shook her head, she was caught and her son was somewhere in here, could he be dead? She felt all was lost…

"To change the future." She answered vaguely.

"To stop Skynet and to prevent the war from ever beginning?" he said.

She stared at him, slightly bewildered.

"I know everything, Sarah. I know about your little plan to try to stop Skynet. I know everything." He said with a smile.

"How?" she shot back at him.

"I have my sources, Sarah." He sat back down. "I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself. That is impolite of me."

"Among other things." Sarah added.

He smiled. "My name is Edward Gaines. I run Kaliba."

"So you're the big cheese? What makes you so special?" she asked him anger escaping her lips.

"This is what makes me special." He stood up and took his jacket off. Edward rolled up with right sleeve and put his arm on the table, revealing something Sarah had seen all too often.

The bar code.

"You're from the future?" she said with some shock.

"Correct." He answered.

"You betrayed the Resistance? You joined with the machines?" she said with disgust.

"I never was part of the Resistance! I was a civilian! I lived in a tunnel and ate garbage for dinner. Skynet captured me and offered me amnesty in exchange for help." Edward sat back down again, rolling his sleeve back down. "They offered me to come back to paradise and to start this company with help, to help ensure Skynet's genesis." He smiled. "I get to live in a Pre-Judgment Day world and when the time comes, I'll still be given amnesty. I created God!"

"You've created a monster." Sarah responded more disgust dripping down her lips.

He stood up and headed for the door.

"Have a good day, Sarah." He said shutting the door behind him.

Sarah still couldn't grasp the concept of the Grays. How could humans betray their own race to secure their own lives? What were the chances Skynet would keep them alive? It was probably just a lie to continue putting a monkey wrench in the Resistance's plans. Humans were bound to disappoint and Sarah saw it more than she wanted to.

* * *

Two guards walked in the entrance way of the facility.

"Clear." The first one said on his walkie-talkie.

"It's always clear." The second one told him.

"Yeah, well good, I don't want to deal with anything right now." He added as they walked away from the door.

They heard… something.

They heard… crying?

The two guards turned down the hallway to see a small red-headed girl crying, her hair in pigtails.

"Doesn't that look like the girl we went after a few months ago?" the first guard asked.

"Yeah it does, what the hell is she doing in here?" the second guard said taking out his walkie-talkie. "We have a little girl in here." He waited for a response. "She looks like the one we've been after." Another click and silence. "Roger."

"Coax her in." the second guard whispered to the first one.

"Yeah… hey little girl… what are you crying about?" the second guard asked.

She hid her face and rubbed her eyes.

"I can't find my dog, have you seen my dog anywhere? He got lost in here…" she sniffled.

"We have seen a dog anywhere." They both shook their heads in response. "How about you come with us?"

"I don't think so." Her voice change from an innocent girl to something more sinister.

They backed away and heard barking behind them. They turned around to see a dog run up to them. A short scream escaped the first guard as he was attacked by the dog, impaled by a blade of mercury.

The second guard looked at the girl, impaled by a steel blade of his own, coming from the hand of the small girl.

The girl and the dog turned into a pool of mercury to reform in an older woman.

It was Catherine Weaver.

She continued down the hallway clad in her beige business suit and smirk on her face.

John heard yelling and screaming as he jolted awake from another nightmare.

_What the hell is going on? _He thought to himself.

He heard the cause of the yelling stop at his door and saw blades pierce through his door. It fell down, shaken from his foundation.

Catherine knocked the lamp down to reveal herself to John.

"Ms. Weaver?" he said with excitement and puzzlement in his voice.

"Hello, John Connor. John Henry told me you were in need of assistance, so here I am." Her trademark smirk on her face.

John felt ice cold metal touch his skin as it cut him free from the chair. He got up immediately.

"We need to find my mom and Cameron." John exclaimed running into the hallway finding a dead guard at his feet. He picked up his pistol and looked at Catherine.

"I'll find your mother. You find Cameron." She said. He nodded and they head off, John dashing away and Catherine casually walking down the hall way.

John kept running the hallway, jumping over dead corpse over dead corpse.

"Catherine really did a number on this place." John whispered to himself. He turned his head toward an open door, he heard voices.

"Come on, we have to get this damn cyborg on the truck."

"Why? We got the important stuff on it… let's just go."

"They want it."

"They want everything." The second man groaned.

John appeared in the doorway with his gun pointing at the two technicians, probably Grays. He saw Cameron on a table, still offline.

"Get away from here." He snarled shaking the gun towards them and walking ahead to intimidate them.

They put their hands up and heading towards the door, John focused on the two men and kept the gun on them until they ran out the door.

John put the gun in his waistband and ran up to Cameron; he had to get her online fast. He looked around and saw several cords attached to her body. He looked at the machine.

"They periodically jolt her with electricity to keep her offline." He looked down at her and pulled the cords.

"120 seconds." He whispered taking his gun out again.

* * *

Sarah looked at her door as she heard several screams and metal making contact with her door.

The door fell and Catherine stood there, her blades extended and cut Sarah free from her restraints.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Sarah asked accusation in her voice.

"To help, now we must meet up with John." Catherine responded.

Sarah nodded at drop of her son's name. She needed to get to him.

John kept the gun towards the door and looked at Cameron at the same time, waiting for her to go back online.

Her eyes opened and a small buzz noise sounded.

She sat up and looked at John.

"Are you okay?" John asked her.

"Yes. Are you okay?" she responded.

"Yeah." She stood up and put her arms around him leaning her head on his shoulder. John was taken back by this, the affection and the situation they were in… who knew if there were any guards left.

"It looks like you saved me this time." She said slowly looking at him, her eyes full of gratitude.

He smiled back at her. "We're still not even."

They pulled away as they heard footsteps, Cameron grabbed John's gun and pointed towards the entrance. Sarah stopped short to see her son and Cameron alive and well, Catherine Weaver followed behind her.

Sarah ran up to her son and grabbed him in an embrace.

"It's time to go." Catherine said as she turned towards the doorway.

Everyone nodded as they followed her out.

* * *

As they ran out of the facility Sarah stopped in her tracks.

"What about Skynet?" she asked.

"Gone, they left right after I got here unfortunately." Catherine responded. "Now please get clear of the building." She said taking a remote control out of her pocket.

The three of them ran far from the building as it ignited in flames, a loud boom hitting them after the blinding light, much like a thunderstorm.

Catherine Weaver walked out of the explosion, morphing back into her original, the reflective mercury state disappearing as she walked up to the trio.

"What the hell is going on?" Sarah yelled at Catherine, remaining stoic at Sarah's outbreak.

"I came to get you out, help your son survive. We need him alive to become the leader of mankind." She responded.

"We were close to Skynet, we were there to stop Judgment Day." She retorted with anger still tainting her voice.

"I'm afraid Judgment Day is on its way, Sarah Connor and sooner than you expect. Stopping Skynet now is an illogical objective. Providing John Connor with supplies, training, and resistance is the appropriate stand to take, but we don't have time to talk about this properly. I will inform more on that situation later."

Silence filled the air as they headed towards Catherine's car.

"Where is Danny Dyson?" Sarah asked. "John, do you know?"

He shook his head. "I don't remember what happened; I just passed out after taking a sip of Danny's water bottle." John's eyes went wide. "Wait… where.. wh… where is Brian?"

Catherine headed towards the trunk of her car.

"I figured you would ask that question." Catherine answered John's inquiry.

She opened the trunk to reveal Brian tied up, his muffled yelling coming through the duct tape over his mouth.

John gave her a puzzled looked which she responded with a closed lip smile.

"He has to answer some questions." She told John.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Review if you want! Next chapter will be up soon!


	19. I am the Leader of the Human Resistance

Hello everyone. Sorry it has been a week since my last update, but I feel this will be the constant. I think I write a more quality chapter with that time constraint. Like I said, I'm new to this writing thing.

It also helps my schedule out with all the other things I'm obligated to.

There will be a period where I will not have an update. I will be gone August 14th to the 24th. I'm replacing the head counselor at a music camp and I will not have time to write. I apologize in advanced!

Again, thanks for the reviews! I love reading everyone! I hope to read more!!! :)

I hope you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Chapter 19: I am the Future Leader of the Human Resistance

John lied on the spacious bed in the guest room of Catherine Weaver's residence. Cameron's arm draped over John's body, sliding up his shirt and massaging his chest. He closed his eyes as he felt Cameron's touch. It was distracting, which exactly what he needed right now. After being captured by the proponents of Skynet, interrogated, and escaping with the help of Catherine Weaver, he needed his mind to be put at ease. Cameron did just that for him. Her fingers now trailed down his left arm causing his hairs to rise from goose bumps.

"You have not spoken in twenty nine minutes, John. Are you okay?" Cameron spoke softly.

John turned onto his back which caused Cameron to lean on her arm, her hair falling as her head rose, a look of anticipation appearing on her face.

John sighed. "Surprisingly, for being held captive by a potential Skynet incarnation, I think I'm doing alright."

Her robot face was on in full gear. "You're ahead of schedule, John."

His eyes focused on her again. "With what I need to know?"

"Yes, with what you need to know." She answered.

He put his hands behind his head and looked up at the ceiling. "Is that part of your mission? Why you let me participate in dangerous situations sometimes?" he asked her.

"Yes, it was an order from you." She answered.

"You mean from future me?" he tried to correct her.

She looked down and then looked back at him placing her arm across his chest. "No, I meant you." She smiled.

He smiled back, feeling a boost of confidence radiating through him.

Catherine Weaver walked up the stairs coming from her basement meeting Sarah as she headed into her kitchen.

"Has he said anything yet?" Sarah asked the liquid metal terminator.

"Unfortunately, not yet, but someone here can make him speak." Catherine answered. Sarah took that as her cue, she headed for the basement door. Catherine stepped in front of her.

"Not you. Him." She said acknowledging the person standing behind her.

It was John with Cameron standing right behind him. John looked at Catherine with puzzlement and apprehension.

"Me? I'm just…" John was cut off.

"You're the future leader of the human resistance." Catherine pointed out.

"But." John stopped. His mind flew back to just a few minutes ago to his conversation with Cameron.

_Her robot face was on in full gear. "You're ahead of schedule, John."_

_His eyes focused on her again. "With what I need to know?"_

_"Yes, with what you need to know." She answered._

_He put his hands behind his head and looked up at the ceiling. "Is that part of your mission? Why you let me participate in dangerous situations?" he asked her._

_"Yes, it was an order from you." She answered._

_"You mean future me?" he tried to correct her._

_She looked down and then looked back at him placing her arm across his chest. "No, I meant you." She smiled._

He nodded and headed towards the basement, Cameron followed behind him only to be stopped by Sarah. John turned around.

"If she is my second in command, she is with me." John protested. Sarah let her go as they both headed for the basement door, uninterrupted this time.

* * *

Brian looked towards the stairs as the footsteps came closer. He slouched in his chair with his hands and feet tied to the chair.

"John Connor and his metal bitch." He greeted his two interrogators.

"Nice to see you too." John grabbed a chair and spun it around sitting in it backwards. Cameron walked up close behind him.

"So." John started. "I obviously didn't send you back as you told me." John said his eyes dead on Brian.

"Well, its good to see you figured that part out." He replied with a mocking tone in his answer. John didn't need to ask who sent him back.

"Where's Danny?" he asked him.

Brian smiled. "Dead." He answered briefly again.

John kept his face still. _How does Cameron keep her face like that? Of course… _John stood up. "You killed him."

"Yeah." Frustration and heat were running through John's veins.

John had to keep his cool; he had to take a better route than Brian did. But, had many people would die because of John Connor? If he was a savior, then shouldn't he save lives, not watch them die around him? Kyle, Derek, Charley, Riley, Martin Bedell someday, and even Cameron died, all for him. It wasn't anything easy to swallow for John.

"You should keep your cool there, General. Don't want to get upset in front of your…"

John punched him in the face with force. "Finish that sentence and you'll regret it."

Brian just stared at him, waiting for John's next move. John started to pace.

"That terminator sent back, that you said was sent to kill Cameron. What was its real mission?" John asked.

"Of course not." Brian answered.

John kept his frustration low. He was receiving his answers, but "yes or no" answers weren't what he was looking for.

He turned around and looked at Cameron, stoic robot face on. She simply nodded telling him to keep trying.

"Why were you sent back here? What was your mission?" John asked with force in his voice.

"I was offered to live in a pre-Judgment Day world, paradise. I was instructed to watch you until you did something stupid or at least until your mother did." He said. "Trying to destroy Skynet, she is so determined to change the future, but even if I am a Gray and a traitor I still told her the truth. You can't change the future, Judgment Day is inevitable. She is just as stubborn as she looks, almost got you killed. Aren't mothers supposed to take care of their children?" He said leaning forward in his chair looking straight at John.

John breathed violently as the words of his mother were still echoing in his mind. Brian was trying to get into his mind and John found it working for a split second.

"My mother raised me to be strong and to fight. Not to give in, I won't take the apple from the tree like you did, Brian." John responded calming down his breathing.

"But the serpent leads to true knowledge and paradise. The Garden of Eden you'll live in will be nothing but a hole in the ground. I'm here, I'm in civilization and for Skynet I'll do what it has commanded me to." He said with a smile on his face.

"You failed. I'm still here, so is Cameron and my mother." John added.

"At least I'm in my garden, John."

"Tied to a chair in a basement of a rebel T-1001." John pointed out. "I wouldn't call that paradise."

"It is, I haven't had to deal with your bitch of a mother for a whole day." He said with a smile.

John had had it. He snapped. John yelled and went for Brian; he grabbed his throat with his two hands, wrapping his fingers around his neck.

"Go ahead and kill me. You'll finally get some revenge." He managed to cough out.

John's face was red with his teeth gritting together. "What the hell are you talking about?" he yelled.

"Revenge for the sorrow I caused you." He managed to smile with John's fingers on his neck. "I killed Cameron." He felt the hands leave his neck. Brian coughed as John stared at him in shock.

John looked at Cameron whose face was in confusion.

_"I killed Cameron."_

_"I killed Cameron."_

_"I killed Cameron."_

_"I killed Cameron."_

_"I killed Cameron."_

The words echoed in John's brain. His Cameron killed by this traitor to his own species just to spare his own life.

"Surprised John?" he laughed. "I killed her and left you all alone. I took her chip and crushed it in my own hand!" the laughter became louder.

John stared at him.

Brian kept going. He wanted John to know the whole story.

"She went with a group of your finest to rescue you. You were captured in a transport after rescuing a lone soldier. I was aboard the transport along with other Grays. We lured them in and we ambushed them. Your precious Cameron managed to get to you, but not before she was engulfed in electricity by another Gray disguised as a prisoner, allowing me to remove her chip and destroy it right in front of you." He laughed again.

John couldn't believe what he heard.

Cameron had died for him, again along with the others during the war and during the present. He made him ache.

John couldn't control himself, he went for Brian again, but was intercepted. Cameron's fist contacted with Brian's face, knocking him out with one swift punch.

Her HUD was malfunctioning again, the first time in a long time. She stood frozen with a fist still extended out towards Brian.

"Cameron? Cameron!" He shook her. She was offline.

"120 seconds." He whispered to himself. _Not again. What the hell happened?_

Her head snapped up and she examined the room before looking at John.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You tell me. You punched him and freaked out." John answered.

"I don't know, but we should discuss it later." She told John trying to change the subject, which was appropriate; there were more pressing matters at hand.

John looked at an unconscious Brian.

He felt betrayed.

The tactics of Skynet have become increasingly more devious and deceptive instead of straightforward and one dimensional.

"We should tell them what happened." Cameron announced.

John nodded and they headed back up the stairs.

* * *

Sarah looked immediately at the basement door as it opened revealing John followed by Cameron.

"What did he say?" she asked.

"Not a whole lot…" John trailed off.

"What's wrong, John?"

John looked straight at his mom. "Mom, I think it's time we should prepare for this war, not trying to prevent it."

"Why John? We were that close."

"And I was caught and almost killed." John added. "Mom, we have to start getting ready for the war, our constant meddling has caused Skynet to become more devious." He looked at his mother. "I think we've sped up the arrival of Judgment Day."

"Don't say that John. We can still…"

"No we can't." he said trying to walk away from her.

Sarah grabbed John's arm and he pulled away. "Listen, you were the one bitching for a normal life and we were that close to obtaining it. We can try it again.

He gritted his teeth. "John Connor will never have a normal life. I will not sacrifice myself to try to achieve such an unreachable goal. I'm the leader of the human resistance, but I'm going to need help sooner than later. I need you to help me mom. We need to start collecting supplies and storing them for the Judgment Day. We also need to know where my future resistance officers are."

"John Connor is correct." Catherine Weaver added as she entered the kitchen.

"I agree with John as well." Cameron added placing a hand on John's shoulder.

Sarah looked at John with the two terminators by his side. John stood there with his fists clenched and a look of determination on his face. She knew he was right.

"Okay, we'll redirect our plan, John." Sarah gave in.

Catherine Weaver headed back towards her backyard door. "I'll inform John Henry. Perhaps he can find some old bunkers to store weapons and non-perishables in."

Sarah walked up to her son. "I'd like to talk with you, John." She looked at Cameron, her hand still on his shoulder.

"Alone." Cameron looked at Sarah until her neck couldn't turn anymore as her military boots clanked across the wooden floor.

John looked at his mother waiting for some sort of lecture and cautionary advice, but instead he got something different.

She hugged him and started to sniffle. "I'm sorry, John." She whispered.

John looked eye level with her.

"My persistence with gaining you a normal life has blinded me a little. It caused me to take my eyes off you and it resulted in you being caught." She paused for a minute. "Perhaps Judgment Day is inevitable, that son of a bitch downstairs was telling the truth the whole time." She laughed a little bit. "I'm here for you, John and I'm going to help you set up everything you need for the future. It's the right idea." She touched his face and John took her into another hug.

"John Connor won't have a normal life, mom. I'm starting to accept it; I know what I have to do." He told her.

"I know, John."

"I love you, mom." He whispered.

"I love you, too." She responded.

* * *

John Henry stared at the sky as he wandered in the backyard of the Weaver household. He then looked down and tilted his head at the red headed girl in front of him.

"John Henry, do you remember the song I taught you?" she asked him.

"Of course I do." He answered.

He began to sing it, perfectly and just as Savannah taught him. She listened and clicked her heels together waiting for her cue to enter, but it never came.

"Savannah, do you mind going inside while I talk to John Henry?" Catherine said kneeling down to Savannah's level and putting a hand on her shoulder.

She nodded and obediently went across the yard and picked up a ball, tossing it in the air.

"It seems we have a change of plans." She told him.

"Yes. It makes more sense to prepare for the war than trying to prevent it." John Henry answered looking towards her, that innocent look on his face.

"Sarah Connor can be stubborn, but she has finally seen what we need to do. John Henry, I would like you to locate fall out shelters and bunkers across the California area. We are going to stockpile them with non perishables and weapons for after Judgment Day."

"Of course Ms. Weaver." He answered.

"Good."

"Ms. Weaver." She turned around.

"I was investigating into my brother's whereabouts; I was able to pick up this transmission on an illegal frequency."

_"We are transporting the A.I.s to the secure location within Los Angeles."_

_"We have two more hours before we are there." There was a pause._

_"What happened? Hell is what happened. Its brother is out there and wants him dead."_

"It appears my brother is closer than we think. He will be making a move soon, Sarah has exposed his son to the Skynet threat, he will be in danger." He warned.

"They will stay here with us for now. You have a full security system set-up and with Cameron and I, it will be safer for them here." She answered him.

A ball rolled towards John Henry's feet. He picked it up and looked towards Savannah.

"John Henry! Throw it over here!" she yelled.

He threw it and looked at Catherine.

"Go play." She instructed. He nodded and walked over to Savannah.

* * *

John sat in the guest room by himself with his hands over his eyes. His mind wandered back to Brian. He never really got too close to him, but he did trust him, which is what shook John's confidence. John had always looked up to older males; the lack of a father would do that to everyone. When he traveled to the future, he looked up to his Kyle, his father. He respected Derek, despite butting heading constantly about Cameron's sincerity. Despite not getting close to Brian it still shook him internally that he would be betrayed about a human in the name of Skynet.

He lied down and placed his head on the pillow. He needed rest, after being captured Skynet and interrogating the man responsible for it he felt he deserved it.

* * *

Sarah sat in the kitchen in silence. She opened her hand revealing several vitamins in her hand. She placed them in her mouth and took a sip of water, swallowing her supplements.

"How much weight have you lost?" Cameron asked her after she quietly entered the kitchen.

"Enough." She said.

"John knows about it, I told him before we rescued you." She told Sarah walking in front of her across the table. "It wasn't my radiation that has gotten you sick. John checked my power cell, it is working."

"Working?" she asked.

"Perfectly." Cameron answered.

Sarah looked away; she let John check her power cell even though she could've just told him it was working, she was certain she had sensors for that. Sarah's eyes looked down at the table.

"John doesn't need to worry himself about me. I'm not going to be in his life forever. You'll be there for him when I'm gone." Cameron tilted her head at Sarah as she said that.

"Yes. I'll be there for him." Cameron answered nodding slightly. "I'm always there for him." Sarah saw honesty in the machines eyes; she saw them fill with emotion as those words left her mouth. Sarah saw in her eyes that she was completely loyal to John; she would always protect them and would always care for him, something she thought machines could never do.

_She is different._ Sarah thought to herself.

Today was full of apprehensive acceptance for Sarah Connor.

"Listen, Catherine and I are going to pick up some stuff from our old house. We will be staying here since the security is great considering there are three terminators in the house." Sarah told Cameron.

Cameron stared at her. "What am I suppose to do?"

"You're going to take John out." She responded.

"Out? Like a date?" she asked.

"Yes, you've been on one before, a date. He needs it, after interrogating Brian and being captured by Skynet's potential incarnation because of Brian. He deserves a night out without the 'great military leader' persona hanging over his head." She said looking away leaning her head on her hand.

"Where should we go?" she asked.

"I don't know, just ask John. You know he'll say yes." Sarah responded with a half smile. She accepted Cameron's sincerity and loyalty to John, she realized that she would never betray him, but she still couldn't grasp John dating a machine. She didn't know if she ever could.

Today was a day full of apprehensive acceptance for Sarah Connor.


	20. The Tin Man Always had a Heart

I hope everyone had a good week and are enjoying this Sunday.

Just a reminder, I will be away coming this Friday to have educate the future musical youth of America.

I will try to update before this Friday, but I am certain that will not happen. So the next update will take a while, I'm very sorry.

I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

----

Chapter 20: The Tin-Man Always Had a Heart

Cameron walked with John down the street holding his hand. She simply told him that she was taking him out and didn't explain where.

"Cameron… where are you taking me?" John asked with some annoyance in his voice. He didn't exactly feel like venturing outdoors, especially after the last few events that occurred.

But Cameron was told by his mother to take him out.

_"Listen, Catherine and I are going to pick up some stuff from our old house. We will be staying here since the security is great considering there are three terminators in the house." Sarah told Cameron._

_Cameron stared at her. "What am I suppose to do?"_

_"You're going to take John out." She responded._

_"Out? Like a date?" she asked._

_"Yes, you've been on one before, a date. He needs it, after interrogating Brian and being captured by Skynet's potential incarnation because of Brian. He deserves a night out without the 'great military leader' persona hanging over his head." She said looking away leaning her head on her hand._

The words replayed in her processor and they played on her HUD. She was given a mission and was going to see it through. With Sarah giving her some acceptance she didn't want to let her down.

"I can't tell you that, John. It is a surprise." She answered not looking at him continuing towards her destination, still connected by the hand with John.

John rolled his eyes, an impatient ting growing in him. He knew it was sweet that Cameron was going to surprise him, but he was getting anxious. They turned another corner and John's eyes directed towards a park. He watched as a mother raised her child onto a small swing, laughter was shared between the two as she started gently swinging the little boy, his smile grew even larger. It was contagious as John's mouth opened into a smile. He didn't notice that Cameron dragged him into the park.

"Surprise, John." She said with a smile. "I brought you to the park, specifically the swings. Your mother used to push you on the swings when you were young. I thought we could have ice cream and sit on the swings."

John smiled. "I told you that?" He never thought a terminator would thing of something so sweet no matter how different their model was.

"Yes. You told me that." She answered him with a slight head nod. "Is this a sufficient place for a date?" she asked innocently.

"It's a great place for a date." He kissed her cheek. Their smiles complimented each other.

----

Sarah placed her pistol in her waistband and covered it with her gray tank top. She looked at Catherine Weaver.

"You ready to go?" she asked her.

"Of course I am." She turned towards the door. "John Henry. Please take care of Savannah while I'm gone."

"Yes Ms. Weaver." He simply answered heading back into the house.

Sarah entered the truck with Catherine Weaver and drove out of the driveway.

It stayed silent for a few minutes, what would Sarah say to a T-1001?

"Why do you continue to care for Savannah?" Sarah asked. "I mean, you aren't obligated and you are a terminator." She added.

"We may be programmed to kill, but we aren't programmed to be cruel. She lost her parents in an unfortunate accident. I may not know a lot about parenting, but killing her isn't in my programming." Catherine responded.

"Not programmed to be cruel." Sarah repeated.

"Yes. Besides, Savannah helps John in the future." Catherine told Sarah looking out the window.

"She does? How? What does she do for John?" Sarah asked.

"She becomes a key member of the Resistance." She answered vaguely.

Sarah stopped asking questions. She knew that was all she was going to get out of Catherine about Savannah. It explained why John Henry's brother went after Savannah. She was important, the question was why?

----

John sat on a swing with a cup of ice cream next to Cameron who occupied the swing next to him, ice cream in her hand. Their arms wrapped around the chains to keep themselves in balance, well, Cameron mimicked John to "blend in".

"Are you enjoying your ice cream?" Cameron asked John, eyes directed toward him.

John looked over at her taking his spoon out of his mouth. "Yes, I happen to love chocolate ice cream." He smiled. He looked at Cameron's ice cream. "How about you?"

She moved the spoon in the cup to pick up another scoop of her strawberry ice cream. "I am enjoying it." She picked up another spoonful and placed it in her mouth. "Would you like to try some strawberry ice cream?" she asked.

John knew that it would look like they were a nauseatingly cute couple in the park and he knew what strawberry ice cream tasted like, but he couldn't say no. "Sure, Cameron." He couldn't subdue his constant smile. Who would've thought Cameron would take him on a date?

They shared their ice cream and soon finished them; they sat on the swings in silence.

"Back at Weaver's house, when we were questioning Brian, you shut down after he said he 'killed you'. I've never seen such a reaction from you. What happened, Cameron?" John asked, bowing his head down and then looked at her, the swings moving slightly.

She hesitated for a minute. John didn't know if she was thinking or trying to act more human.

"I was worried about you, I understand that being John Connor can be lonely and I filled that void. When Brian told me he killed me in the future I was upset that I wasn't there for you." She answered looking completely at John, emotion clearly in her eyes.

"What about you? You weren't upset about what you heard what happened to you?" he asked her, his eyes squinting with inquisitiveness.

"No, I'd die for you, John." She answered without hesitation that time.

John looked away with a blank expression.

_You aren't going to die again._

"You won't die for me. I'll die if you die, Cameron. I need you." He told her taking her hand as the swings moved with more intensity. Their legs curled up above the ground.

Cameron didn't answer. She knew if she did, it would result in an argument. She wanted this date to a pleasant experience. They sat there in silence again.

John watched that same little boy pumping his legs propelling himself into the air on the swing set across from him. It was time to change the subject. It was supposed to be a date.

"Hey Cameron. Try this." He told her, he put his legs together and started pumping them. Cameron kept her eyes on him and her eyes moved following John as the swing went higher.

She looked at her own legs and picked them up putting them together. Cameron bent them back and swung them forward. She did it again. And again. She looked up and she noticed that she was moving.

"I'm adding approximately four inches each time I propel myself." She looked up and smiled. "It is working."

John laughed. _So technical._ "I told you it would."

She looked at him and smiled.

"I had fun today, Cameron." He told her.

"Me too." She answered.

----

The black truck pulled up towards the Connor's old residence. Sarah bounced forward and then back as she applied the brake, a squeak emanating from underneath them.

"I'm going to go collect our belongings." Sarah said as she looked over at Catherine, their house in the background.

"Okay. Is there anything you would like me to do Ms. Connor?" she asked with such formality.

"Yes, make sure no one is in there." She ordered. The two stepped out of the vehicle and slammed the doors making their way towards the house.

Catherine made another pass through the hallway leading to the kitchen and walked passed Sarah.

"No one is here. Get all your belongings." She said, the sound of her heels echoing throughout the empty house.

Sarah smirked and looked at her list of things to grab from the house. She had a short and concise list for herself and then she glanced at John's list, which consisted of Cameron's stuff as well.

_Damn it, John. I said essentials. I don't see how an Ipod is an essential._ She thought to herself.

"My room's first." She sighed putting John's list in her pocket.

She went into John and Cameron's room; she pulled out the list he gave her. She let out a sigh and started collecting the items in a duffel bag she found under their bed.

After various clothes of John's and Cameron's, Cameron's guns, an Ipod, and several pictures, Sarah had one item left.

Cameron's purple leather jacket.

Sarah glanced around the room and headed towards the closet. There it was, sitting haphazardly on a hanger, she grabbed it carelessly and tossed it into the bag, but she heard something hit the floor. She looked down on the floor and picked up the fallen item.

It was a diamond.

Not just any diamond, it was the diamond John gave Cameron after breaking into the resistance safe house.

_"Why are diamonds a girl's best friend?" Cameron said holding a diamond with her fingertips as she closed the door._

_"What?" responded counting the money they recently obtained, bill after bill sliding through her fingers._

_"Why are diamonds a girl's best friend?" Cameron asked again, her voice was softer this time, trailing off towards the end of the repeated statement. She was standing next to Sarah handing her the diamond._

_"Where'd you get that?" Sarah asked looking at it._

_"John gave it to me."_

_"He did, did he? That was sweet of him." A hint of disgust in her voice as she placed it on the table, not handing it back to Cameron._

_Cameron immediately took it back._

_"We have a whole bag of them do you want one? There a girls' best friend."_

_"Not this girl." She coldly responded sorting more of the bills, not bothering to look at Cameron._

Sarah memory repeated that conversation over and over again, how cold she was to the machine when it first came. Even then, John defended her and he still did, but Sarah's view on Cameron had changed, especially now, as the diamond reflected the light from outside across the room.

She kept the diamond as a keepsake from John, what machine would do that? A machine specifically designed to infiltrate and kill. What machine like that would keep a diamond that someone gave them? Sarah's eyes softened and she tilted her head staring at the diamond.

She was different. _The tin man always had a heart. _She thought to herself.

----

"We should go Ms. Connor." Weaver's voice entered the room.

Sarah placed the diamond in her pocket and placed the jacket in the duffel bag.

"You're right. Let's go." She zipped up the bags and headed out the door.

John and Cameron sat on the couch watching TV while Savannah was downstairs in the basement playing John Henry when the door opened and revealed Catherine and Sarah. John and Cameron stood up and headed for the door.

"Anything happen?" John asked.

"It was unexciting and I'm glad for it." She said with a smile as she dropped a couple of duffel bags on the floor.

Catherine walked passed them and headed towards the basement, no doubt to talk to John Henry.

Cameron picked up the bags and headed upstairs. John looked at his mother who was looking at the diamond.

"What are you looking at?" he asked as he walked up closer.

"The diamond you gave Cameron." She spoke softly.

"Why do you have it?" he asked.

"Because it made me realize something, John." She told him. "It made me realize that you were right about her. She is different, she cares about you, John and she will take care of you when I'm gone."

John just stared he didn't know what to say to his mother. The constant arguing and tension about Cameron had finally melted away; it was relieving for him to hear that.

"She protects you and is your girlfriend; I suggest you show your gratitude." She told him placing the diamond into his hands.

John looked down at the diamond and then his mother with his mouth agape. Was she serious?

"You feeling alright?" he asked her with a joking smile on his face.

"Yes, John. I'm feeling alright. Go help her unpack." Sarah said grabbing her bag and heading up the stairs.

----

Catherine Weaver entered the basement to see John Henry staring at his monitor, observing the surroundings and checking up on security among other things.

"Hello Ms. Weaver. Was your trip to the Connor's residence successful?" he asked her with the usual pip in his voice.

"Yes it was John Henry." She looked at his screen. "What are you watching?" she asked.

"I'm observing security, all is clear and I'm watching a movie." John Henry answered.

"What movie?" she asked him.

"It is called Koyaanisqatsi: Life out of Balance. It was directed Godfrey Reggio and the music is by Phillip Glass. It is quite interesting. There is no dialogue like in traditional movies." He turned around. "It is a tone poem set to a juxtaposition of images and music." The music droned in the background.

"That is quite interesting, John Henry." Catherine said walking up towards the monitor watching the images flash by. Images of city buildings and cars driving by and getting caught in traffic jams, people roaming the streets completely in their own worlds. The images continued to flash as the music got more intense. Catherine tilted her head as she saw bombs going off, nuclear bombs being tested in the heart of the desert.

"It sends a clear message, Ms. Weaver."

"What is that, John Henry?"

"That humans don't use technology, they live technology. It is as ubiquitous as the oxygen they inhale and exhale." He told her.

Catherine looked at the images flashing by again.

"It is inevitable." She answered.

"Yes, Sarah Connor's idea of stopping it was futile." John Henry told her.

His eyes averted towards the chair in the middle of the basement.

"What are we going to do with him?" he asked her.

"I have to ask John what to do." She walked away continuing up the stairs.

----

John put the last of his belongings away and put the duffel bag underneath the bed. Cameron turned around after closing the closet door.

"That's all of it." John said sitting down on the bed.

Cameron walked over to him and sat next to him placing her hands in her lap.

"Thanks again for today, Cameron." John said with a smile.

A closed lip smiled responded to John's words. "You're welcome, John." She placed a hand on John's.

_She is different._ He thought to himself again with his face turning a slight red. For a machine, she knew how to make him blush.

But how much of a machine was she really?

She was different. She is different.

It is something he always pondered, how human was she? Cameron obviously had unsurpassed abilities to mimic human behavior, but after the explosion she changed. She willingly overrode her objective to terminate him. She grew attachments to clothing, like her purple leather jacket. John had seen her terminate other terminators, the look on her face showed disturbance after killing Cromartie and Vick.

Now with her CPU being free of Skynet thanks to John Henry, Cameron had no limits. She truly was different.

She cared. She told him she loved him, was that more than a ploy to keep her self activated?

"John?" Cameron said snapping John out of his reverie.

John shook his head and looked up at Cameron who still held his hand. "What?"

"Are you okay? You haven't spoken in four and a half minutes." She told him.

He smiled. _She can act so human, but she is still so precise._ "I'm great, Cameron." He could ask her about her development another time, right now, he just desired her company.

It was interrupted by Catherine Weaver entering the room.

"Hello, John. Hello, Cameron." She greeted stopping in the door frame.

John stood up. "What is it?" he asked with urgency in his voice.

"We have something that needs to be taken cared of." Catherine said.

"What is that?" he asked.

"Brian."

John looked down at the floor. "You want to kill him?"

"He is a threat, John." Cameron stood up finally saying something.

_So human?_

But she was right, he was a threat.

"Okay. Do it." John reluctantly said. How could he send a man to murder? No matter how much of an immoral human he was?

Catherine nodded and left with Cameron.

Cameron stopped at the door and looked at John, her face asked for reassurance for what she was about to do.

He nodded and she walked away from the door frame, sealing the man's fate.

Cameron returned to John's room to see him lying down on the bed, his hands behind his head.

----

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"Of course, it's your room too." He answered.

She walked up towards the bed and sat down next to him. Cameron put a piece of paper on the table next to the bed and placed a hand on his face.

"You're upset that I killed Brian." She hit the nail on the head with that statement.

John turned around and looked at her.

"I am, but I know it was necessary. I feel guiltier about myself sending him to his death, not you killing him. You're a machine. You're programmed to kill." He winced at the face she made when he said "machine".

She looked down at the word "machine".

"Cameron, I'm sorry…" he trailed off.

She didn't answer for a while; her eyes still didn't meet his. "I read all the notes."

John's face turned quizzical. "What notes?"

"Jordon's notes. I read all of them." She told him.

"I'm sorry for her death." She added. "I wrote one for Brian, I wrote to him that I wish things could have been different for him in the future."

John looked at her with such a regretful look on his face.

She was showing signs of sympathy, a human emotion with such depth. She protected him even though she didn't have to anymore, she _wanted_ to. She took him on a date, tapping into some of his favorite childhood memories. She wrote notes to her victims, expressing regret for killing them. How could she be just a machine?

"Is that what that paper is over there?" he asked.

"Yes, John." She answered.

He smiled. "I'm sorry I called you a machine. You're so much than that, Cameron." He sat up and put his arm around her, she leaned on his shoulder putting her arm around his front, placing her hand on the opposite shoulder.

"Apology accepted, John." She smiled at him.

How could you show sympathy without a heart?

John couldn't answer that question, but…

One thing was for certain…

_The Tin-man always had a heart._

_

* * *

_

The ending was inspired by River2027's story "Fair is Foul". That is an awesome example of writing and TSCC fandom! I suggest you all check that out.

Hope you all enjoy this chapter! Review you like!


	21. He's Ahead of Schedule

Hello loyal readers and new ones. I hope you all had a good week and few days while I was gone. I'm glad to be back to give you this chapter.

Some updates:

I start grad school this Friday, so I will have to work around that to write. I might have to decrease the one a week update, but I'm hoping I won't.

Being a counselor was a great experience if anyone of you were wondering.

I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Remember, reviews, comments, feedback, and questions are always welcome!

Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 21: He's Ahead of Schedule

"Okay, so what is the plan?" John asked placing his hands on the table in the basement of the Weaver house.

John Henry placed his toy back onto the table and looked up at John with an odd smile. "I have located several bunkers and fall out shelters that will be suitable to store non-perishable food, water, computers, and weapons."

"That brings up the next step, how are we going to obtain all of these things?" John asked with an overwhelming tone underlying his voice.

"John, you didn't think that you weren't prepared for this already?" Catherine answered with a smirk on her face.

John looked at her, certain what she meant, but wanted to make sure. "What do you mean by that exactly?"

"John Connor, you are the leader of the human resistance and just as resourceful as any leader should be. You sent back Resistance officers to collect what you need to prepare for Judgment Day. All they are waiting for are your orders."

"My orders?" John voice rose.

"Yes, your orders." She answered him without hesitation.

John looked at her with surprise. "I mean, will they listen to me? I'm just a…"

Cameron walked closer to him and placed a hand on his. He averted his attention towards her and was greeted with her smile. He smiled back and gave her a nod. He knew what she was implying, he was ahead of schedule. He'd been through so much, being captured, rescuing Cameron, and standing up to a traitor, he'd grown. He was well on his way to the man he would become. "Would" being the key word in that sentence, he was destined to become the John Connor that leads the humans to victory.

_"You're ahead of schedule." Cameron said looking up from her repaired arm._

_"With what?" John asked with a puzzled look on his face._

_"With what you need to know." Cameron answered with the stoic robot face._

"Where are they located?" John asked.

John Henry looked up towards John. "You sent back several members of your Resistance to help you in this task. They are scattered throughout the Los Angeles area. The closest one is located on Garden Ave in downtown Los Angeles. Her name is Stacy Duncan; she is one of your Commanders in the 132nd. She'll have supplies for you."

"Well then, we should get moving soon." John said turning around to the Cameron.

"I agree there is a chance Skynet knows about this." Cameron told John.

"You mean…" Sarah was interrupted.

"A terminator could be sent to assassinate these officers and get to John." Cameron finished her sentence.

"That is a distinct possibility." Catherine said.

"Awesome. You're not going, John." Sarah told him.

"I'm afraid that isn't an option. John must be the one to confirm the movement of the supplies. No one else can, order from John himself." John Henry explained to Sarah.

Sarah sighed, she knew that John could handle himself, but the guilt of him being captured was still lingering in her mind. She couldn't see him in that position again, because of her single tracked mind. She needed to protect him, but he also needed to grow into the man he had to become.

John gave his mom a look of determination. He was going; he especially had to now since Stacy would only respond to him.

"If I'm supposed to become the messiah everyone is waiting for, I need to experience danger, mom. Plus, we can't the supplies without my face to face confirmation." John told his mom.

"You're right." She looked at him with a look of agreement. "But I'm going with you."

----

Cameron pulled up in their black SUV in front of an old brick apartment complex. John and Sarah's heads feel the small backlash of Cameron stepping on the brakes. The concise symphony of car doors slammed after the truck was turned off. They stepped out and looked at the building.

"This place is a dump." John exclaimed looking at the mildew covering the faded red bricks.

"Well, we aren't in the nicest of neighborhoods." Cameron responded looking around seeing shirtless gang members covered in tattoos wondering the streets cracking their knuckles.

"I thought this was downtown, downtown is supposed to be nice." John replied looking back towards Cameron.

"There is a lot to downtown, John. C'mon, let's go." Sarah said nodding her head in the direction of the entrance.

The door squeaked and slowly shut behind them as they entered the lobby of the apartment building. The inside was dirtier than the outside of the building, the air was stale, the desk was empty and the elevator was a rusted green and half open.

"What room did John Henry say?" Sarah asked.

"Room 5B, but we're going to have to take the stairs." Cameron replied heading for the stairs. John and Sarah followed heading for the stairs.

"Here it is." John pointed out walking in front of the door.

"Knock." Sarah directed.

John nodded and knocked on the door.

No answer.

He knocked again, this time a little harder.

"Hello?" John yelled. _If only I could yell, "It's me the leader of the Human Resistance, John Connor!"_ John shook his head.

John turned around to Cameron walk up to the door and grabbed the knob, breaking the frame the door slid open after the crackling of wood snapping.

Sarah and Cameron took their pistols and entered the living room of the small apartment, John followed behind.

"Not too much stuff in here, she must be a minimalist." John joked. He looked around and looked at a poster on the wall. Cameron noticed his staring and walked up to him.

It was a poster of a kitten struggling to stay on a tree branch with the caption: "Hang in there, baby!"

"People do like small animals." John said as he looked at Cameron.

She turned to him and smiled.

They turned the bodies to the direction of a sound. Something hit the ground, Sarah and Cameron raised their pistols to a defensive position, closing in on the noise.

"Mom!" John yelled as a figure closed in.

The figure hit Sarah with a 2x4 causing Sarah to fall. Cameron pointed her gun, but it was knocked out of her hand by the mysterious person. Another swing with the 2x4 and Cameron face swung to the right. John gritted his teeth and ran up towards the person and grabbed them by the back of the head, stretching their neck. The 2x4 hit the ground, Sarah got up and Cameron picked up her pistol.

"Okay! I give up!" a feminine voice cried. "Let me go!"

John complied and the woman straggled away from the trio and looked at them. She moved her hood revealing her mouth was agape. She saluted.

"General Connor! My apologies, sir!" she stated.

John shook his head; he wasn't used to being called that, in his eyes his wasn't a "general" just yet. "It's okay, you must be…." He was interrupted.

"I am Commander Stacy Duncan of the 132nd under the command of Perry." Stacy stated again in a perfect military tone.

"Stacy, you can drop the military logistics, I'm no general yet." John said with a smile.

Her voice was calmer this time. "But you will be." She turned her head towards Cameron.

"Second General Connor!" she said.

Sarah eyes grew and an incredulous tone erupted from her mouth. "Connor?!"

"Yes, these two are married in the future!" she said with a smile.

John winced at that line as he knew his mother was about to have a heart attack.

Cameron tried to hide a smile.

"Do you have what we came for?" Sarah asked her tone still a little perturbed from the recent news. A look from Sarah pierced through Stacy as she asked.

"The supplies? Affirmative, Ms. Connor." She answered quickly ignoring the dirty look from the mother of the future. She ran towards the poster and ripped it off the wall revealing a safe.

They walked up to her as she punched in a code, it beeped confirming the correct selection of numbers and she opened it revealing ammunition.

"I was able to obtain ammunition for 9mm handguns, various assault rifles like M16's and M4's. I also was able to get a bunch of these. She pulled out a huge caliber bullet. "This is a Mark 211 Raufoss round. If you aim for the chip, the metal will go down in one shot." She said with a satisfying smile.

John looked away; he remembered what Derek told him about that same exact round of ammo.

_"These going to kill it?" John asked._

_"No, a speed bump. That's all." Derek held up a large caliber bullet and showed it to John. "Now this… Raufoss. Mark 211 Round. Tungsten core, armor piercing. High explosive incendiary. Hits with the force of a 20 millimeter cannon. Saw your dad take down an H-K with one of those. He liked it better than his plasma rifle." Derek said._

_"So this is going to kill it?" John asked with uncertain assumption._

_"It'll make it stop. Reconsider its life choices." He responded._

John kept staring. His father and Derek both used these in the future. He took the bullet from Stacy and stared at it with his mouth opened slightly, his father and uncle floating through his mind.

"Yeah, I know. It's quite a piece of artillery." Stacy told John with a smile.

_She is_ _certainly cheery for a solider from a dystrophic future. _Sarah thought to herself. "Where are the weapons?" she asked.

Stacy put a finger up and tilted her head heading for the center of the room, she kicked the carpet out of the way and tapped her foot on the wooden floor below, clear cut marks seen to make a rectangle on the floor.

"In here." She simply said with another smile on her face.

Another thud sounded as another duffel bag hit the floor of the trunk in their black truck. Stacy turned around dusting off her hands with a smile.

"That's it. So, what's next?" she asked.

"Shouldn't you know this is your mission given to you by me in the future?" John replied.

She folded her arms and stared at John. "We'll this was it, my mission is complete." She scratched the back of her head after she spoke. "I'm supposed to stay with you if that is capable, John wanted me to stay with you after we met up."

John looked at his mother who nodded. "That shouldn't be a problem." She said with a small smile on her face.

----

The Connors and Stacy entered the Weaver residence once again greeted by Catherine with Savannah on the floor playing with some stuffed animals.

"Welcome back." Catherine looked at Stacy. "I assume all went as planned?"

"For once, yeah." Sarah replied her eyes dropping towards the floor and then to Catherine. "This is Stacy; she'll be taking the open guest room."

Catherine nodded. "Of course." She said as she turned towards the basement, most likely to talk with John Henry.

Stacy's mouth was slightly open. She held back the urge to salute the T-1001 that helped John and formed the Cyborg Resistance in the future. She rarely saw the higher ups of the Human Resistance, but now she was in the same room with all of them. She fought the urge to salute Catherine as John told her not to, she of course obliged.

Stacy picked up the duffel bag she placed on the floor and pointed toward the stairs. "Is my room that way?"

John looked at her. "Yeah, it is the up the stairs and is the second room on the right, after the bathroom."

She smiled at John and waved. "Thanks, John." She said as she headed towards the stairs.

Cameron entered the house carrying all the bags that contained the supplies of weapons and ammunition.

"Cameron, do you need help with that?" John asked walking up towards her as she headed upstairs.

"No, but thank you for asking." She said with a smile, John smiled back at her and took a couple of her bags anyway.

"Sometimes it's nice to have help." He stated gaining a bigger smile from Cameron.

Sarah sighed to herself. She could handle John's attachment to the machine, she finally had come to some sort of term with it, Sarah could never fully accept anything, but her reluctance always softened upon seeing Cameron's genuine return of feelings. Like she said before, _the tin man always had a heart._

She knew that John's attachment would never be unhealthy. Cameron would do everything in her power to make sure he wouldn't do anything stupid to help her or get in her way. John is stubborn, but Cameron is just as stubborn. They were perfect for each other.

Did she just think that?

She accepted it, but a matrimonial union between man and machine?

How is that possible?

Catherine walked back into the living room to send Savannah to bed; she refocused on Sarah and entered her view.

"What is on your mind, Ms. Connor?" she asked.

"Are John and Cameron married in the future?" she asked, Sarah of course wasn't one for subtlety.

"Not in the future I came from, but it is completely possible with how close they have gotten, but it is only going to help us in the future." Catherine replied.

She squinted her eyes which were oozing with some criticism, wanting an explanation. "How is that?"

"Most of the resistance hates the machines, they don't want any co-existence between them." She stated. "John sees it differently; it reprograms the machines and teaches them morals and the values of life. Many of his officers questioned it, but didn't act on it, they trust John Connor, and everyone does. There were some machines that wanted peace, John's love for a machine will only strengthen those views that peace can exist between man and machine. John Connor isn't just a savior for humans, he is for us." She said pointing to herself.

Sarah nodded. Her son was destined to save mankind, but machine too?

"John Connor asked me to join him in 2027 from the future I came from." She told Sarah.

"Did you?" she asked.

"No, after seeing what he did, teaching morals to machines, I decided to help him in a different manner."

"You created John Henry." Sarah answered and Catherine responded with a nod. "Correct. I created a sentient intelligence with values on human life. He will only help John with the Cyborg Resistance in the future after Judgment Day; he will facilitate the victory against Skynet. I came to the present to help John Connor." Catherine told Sarah.

Sarah nodded. She realized that her son needed Cameron in so many ways. Not only for her knowledge and training, but she would become a key in the resistance, not only human, but machine. Catherine didn't help future John, she joined her John to help him prepare because of the equality he treated the machines with in the future.

"Good night, Ms. Connor." Catherine said as she headed towards the basement again.

----

John's fingers traced along Cameron's arm up her neck, he caressed her skin up to her face. She closed her eyes at his touch.

"John, I'm not real." She said.

"Wait, what did you say?" he responded, confusing by her sudden statement.

"My skin isn't real and I'm not a real human girl. I'm a cybernetic organism. Wouldn't you prefer a real female?" she asked him.

John thought about this, he hadn't ever thought about it.

"No, Cameron. Just because you aren't a 'real' girl doesn't mean anything to me. You're the one I want to be with. Why would you think of something like that?" John asked with concern in his voice.

"Pinocchio." She responded.

"Pinocchio?"

"Yes, I watched it with Savannah the other day. He became a real boy at the end and I was wondering if I could become a real girl, but my databases revealed no evidence of the Blue Fairy existing." She told him.

John laughed to himself. She could be so naïve sometimes, it was cute. "That was just a movie, Cam. The Blue Fairy doesn't exist."

"Oh." That was all that could escape her mouth, a note of disappointment in her voice.

John's eyes softened and got closer to her. "You don't need a fairy for you to gain my acceptance. I love you for who you are, Cameron. I wouldn't want you any other way." He told her.

She smiled. "Really?"

"Yes."

"Promise?" she asked.

"Promise." He smiled giving her a kiss. She smiled back at her.

"I'm going to patrol the perimeter. I'll be back in a half hour." She stated standing up and walking towards the door.

"Okay, Cameron." John answered placing his hand on the pillow again. The words of Stacy popped into his head.

_"Yes, these two are married in the future!" she said with a smile._

He smiled now repeating that line in his head, but not the first time as he thought his mother would crack someone's skull at the end of that statement. But now a smile was placed on his face, Cameron was still with him in the future, well one possible future.

"I should really do something for her." His eyes widened after his spoke to himself.

He got out of bed and looked through his drawer; he shuffled through his clothes and found what he was looking for. John carefully picked the object he was looking for, his index finger and thumb held it in place.

The diamond he gave her.

_Diamonds are a girl's best friend._ He thought.

He smiled to himself. She kept the diamond he gave her, a machine. No. Not a machine, it was Cameron. She wasn't a machine to him and she always further proved that with sentiments and thoughtful gestures like this. Even the most advanced machine couldn't mimic human behavior like this. She was as real as it gets.

A light bulb went off in his head.

"I know exactly what to give Cameron." He said to himself with a smile on his face. He placed the diamond back in his drawer and lied back on the bed.

_Diamonds are a girl's best friend._

----

Morning in the Weaver residence was as usual with the exception with an extra mouth to feed. Savannah sat at her usual spot at the breakfast table feeding herself cereal. John walked down the stairs to find Cameron cooking breakfast as usual.

"Good morning, John. I made pancakes." She smiled.

He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Yours are always good." He answered walking towards the refrigerator, he grabbed the orange juice.

"You know, you always pour it for me. You're slacking, Cameron." He joked wearing a smile on his face.

"The leader of the human resistance should be able to do something for himself." She retorted returning his smile flipping another pancake.

Footsteps came from the foyer and Stacy appeared, a smile growing on her face.

"Pancakes!" she squealed, no doubt excited to see some form of real food.

"You've been in the present for a while, you haven't seen pancakes?" John asked her.

She blushed. "Yeah, I wasn't a really good cook…" she trailed off taking a seat across from Savannah, a plate landed in front of her. She looked by at Cameron who had an apron on and a spatula in hand.

She took a bite and closed her eyes. "These are really good, Cameron."

"Thanks, I added a teaspoon of vanilla to the recipe on the box." She turned around towards the stove.

"I smell pancakes." Another voiced entered the room. Everyone looked up from their breakfast routines to see Sarah with Catherine behind her.

"John and Cameron, we need you in the basement. Stacy, would you mind staying with Savannah?" Catherine asked.

"Of course not!" she smiled. "Savannah what are you doing?" she asked as John and Cameron headed towards the basement.

"Coloring, look, it's a turtle." They heard as they entered the basement of the Weaver residence.

----

"Good morning, everyone." John Henry greeted them with his innocent disposition.

"Good morning, John Henry. What do you have for us today?" Catherine asked.

"I have discovered the location of the next Resistance member. He is located on 255 Desmond Street." He told them. "He should have more weapons for you along with computer equipment."

"Excellent. Does John have to go?" Sarah asked.

"Yes. He must give him visual confirmation." John Henry stated.

"Future you couldn't have made you stay on the sidelines for these missions?" she asked John.

"Future me knows I need to grow in him one day." He responded.

Cameron smiled at that remark.

_Ahead of schedule. _She thought.

"What is his name?" John asked.

"His name is Will Browning. He is a soldier from the Hammerhead Bunker. He is in room 3C in the apartment complex you'll be heading to." John Henry answered.

John picked up a gun from the table and pressed the safety and placed it in his waistband.

"Let's go, we need to get there before that T-888 shows up at his place and waits for us." John commanded as he headed towards the stairs.

"You heard him, let's go." Sarah added heading after John.

Cameron smiled again and headed for the stairs.

Like she said before,

_He's Ahead of schedule._


	22. I Told you it was a Tight Present

That took longer than expected. Sorry about that. Grad school is quite busy and takes up a lot of time.

Also... my Document Manager was malfunctioning. This chapter was done a few days before, but unfortunately I couldn't upload it.

Thank you for the reviews once again and I hope to read more.

The next update will come as soon as I can get it done. Like I said, grad school....

Enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Chapter 22: I told you it was a Tight Present

The black truck pulled up to the apartment complex, their mission was simple and clear.

To collect and evacuate, with a possible terminator on their tail, they couldn't afford taking too much time.

Cameron was out of the truck first followed by John and Stacy. She stared at the building; her HUD flashed 255 Desmond Street. The doors slammed in succession as they headed towards the entrance.

"This neighborhood is definitely nicer than the last one." John stated opening the door.

"Hey, it's not like I wanted to live there! I didn't really have a choice. It was out of the general area and isolated, being away from the public eye is good especially when you have enough weapons to start a small army." Stacy answered.

John headed to the elevator and placed the up button, the door opened immediately.

"Convenient." He said as they three entered the elevator.

* * *

Sarah wiped the sweat from her forehead as she removed her head from the sink. She spent the morning throwing up… again. She took another sip of water as she grabbed a towel and wiped her forehead again, covered in sweat again. She coughed exiting the bathroom.

She knew the signs and she knew there wasn't a thing she could do. She was losing weight; taking vitamins everyday wasn't helping her.

Sarah placed her hands on the kitchen counter and breathed heavily as beads of sweat dropped onto the smooth marble below her. The next liquid drop that hit the cold marble was a warm tear.

Sarah cried, she felt helpless now. How much longer until the inevitable? How much longer will she be around to help her son? How much longer until Skynet found them? Two clocks ticked down, two hourglasses dropped sand, and both wielded the same results.

* * *

John knocked on the door of Will Browning's apartment with no answer as a response to the skin on wood contact.

"No answer… again." John sighed as he knocked on the door again.

John knocked harder this time and then jiggled the door handle. He took a few step back when the door opened, the rusty hinges whistled a creepy tone.

Cameron pushed John aside taking her pistol out of her waistband; she entered followed by Stacy who followed Cameron's lead taking her gun out too.

Cameron scanned the room.

"No threats." She looked to her right to find a body of the empty apartment. "But." She turned around to look at the two behind her. "There is a body." She walked up to it and turned it over.

Stacy walked up to Cameron and sighed. "Will… no." She looked at his neck which revealed bruises.

"It was here." She whispered. Stacy put her gun in a defensive position.

Cameron walked up to John.

"What's up?" he asked.

"It was here before us. We need to get the supplies and go." She nodded. "Fast." She added.

John nodded and started searching with Stacy.

"It would be easier to find the supplies if we knew where they were." John complained as he started opening the kitchen cabinets.

Stacy looked at him opening another cabinet above her head. She didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry for that." John said. "I'm just on edge right now, I'm sorry about Will." He added.

She nodded. "It's okay. Just keep looking."

John looked away. He knew she was upset, a fellow comrade had fallen to the machines, but how many times had she seen this? How many times would John see this happen to soldiers? All of them willing to die for John. He couldn't fathom such dedication to one man. To him.

"I found them." Cameron said as she scanned a wall in the living room. Stacy and John ran up to her.

"There behind the wall." She explained as she punched a hole through the wall. The weapons fell to the ground as the wall crumbled in front of them.

Stacy grabbed them the weapons and placed them in the duffel bag around her shoulder.

John picked up the computer equipment Weaver mentioned earlier and placed them in his bag.

"John. We have to go." Cameron reminded him.

"Ri-right. Sorry." He placed them in the duffel bag, followed by the sound of the zipper.

Cameron led the way out the door. She looked both ways and nodded.

"It's clear." She whispered as she headed for the elevator. She pressed the button as Stacy and John walked up behind her.

The pleasant beep of the elevator told them it made it to their floor. The door opened and an arm extended towards Cameron. Her eyes opened wide as she was thrown through the air above John and Stacy. Cameron crashed through several light fixtures causing flashes in the hallway.

It was here.

Stacy pulled out her gun and John followed suite, but he was grabbed by Stacy.

"Run!" she yelled aiming her gun at the machine.

John didn't have time to argue. He nodded and ran towards Cameron, gunshots echoing through the hallway.

"Cameron!" he yelled as he ran up towards her. She got up and pushed John behind her.

"Go. Now!" she answered with a stern voice. She pointed the gun at the terminator, who now had Stacy by her neck.

The shots fired.

The machine redirected his focus.

**TARGET ACQUIRED: GENERAL CAMERON CONNOR**

**PRIORITY ALERT**

**OBJECTIVE: TERMINATE GENERAL CAMERON CONNOR**

The machine dropped Stacy unharmed and headed towards Cameron. With a look of determination Cameron grabbed the machine by its shirt and swung it into the wall to his left side, leaving an indent of his huge frame. He copied her, he took her and threw Cameron into the wall behind her, she flew through it and landed it Browning's apartment. The terminator walked through the hole in the wall to continue his onslaught.

John looked around panicked. He searched for something to help Cameron. He looked at the light fixture above him, wires and cables exposed, no doubt when Cameron was thrown above him. He jumped and grabbed them; more wires appeared including the main power source, a long insulated cord. He pulled on it causing more of the tiles to fall on John.

"John, what are you doing?" Stacy asked getting up from the attack, pistol in hand.

"I'm going to give the terminator a surprise." He answered. "I need you to help Cameron."

She nodded and entered. She knew what she had to do.

Distract.

Cameron went through the kitchen cabinets and dropped to the floor. This terminator was bigger and stronger than she was and was using her strategy against her. She started to get up only to be swallowed in the shadow of the terminator, she looked up to see an arm close in, it stopped however.

Gun shots fired making contact with the mechanical menace. It looked up and to see Stacy and her smoking barrel. It tilted its head.

**TARGET IDENTIFIED: STACY DUNCAN**

**THREAT: MODERATE**

**ACTION: TERMINATE**

It stepped away from Cameron and headed for Stacy. She aimed her gun at it and started taking steps back from the approaching Skynet killing machine.

Cameron stepped in.

She grabbed the terminator and tossed it into the wall.

It got up, all attention on Cameron. It walked over towards her but was stopped in its tracks. Its HUD shorting out, it fell to the floor offline.

John appeared from behind the machine with a long cord from the light fixtures, Cameron smiled.

"Like I said… ahead of schedule." She said with the smile still on her face.

He smiled back, but it disappeared quickly looking back at the offline terminator. "We have less than 120 seconds let's go."

Cameron and Stacy nodded. They picked up their bags and headed for the stairs.

**REBOOT SUCCESSFUL**

**ALL SYSTEMS FUNCTIONING NORMALLY**

**PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: LOCATE LAST RESISTANCE MEMBER**

**PRIORITY TARGETS: JOHN AND CAMERON CONNOR**

He stood up and frowned, frustrated.

The sound of a truck entered his ears as he stood up.

His eyes glowed red.

* * *

The hum of the engine and sound of the air passing the truck were the only sounds the trio were listening to. John caught his breath from running down the stairs and into the truck in less than two minutes.

"That was close." Stacy said taking her attention away from the backseat window.

"Tell me about it. That really doesn't make my list of things that make my day." John sarcastically answered.

Cameron kept her eyes on the road and her hands at ten and two o'clock on the wheel.

"John, what you did with-" she was cut off.

"I know, I know. It was dangerous, I shouldn't have gotten involved with the terminator." He finished her sentence, but incorrectly.

"I was going to say that it was very resourceful of you to use the electricity from the light fixture." She looked at John. "It allowed us to escape with all the supplies and relatively unharmed."

John was taken back by her answer. He blushed a little from her answer. "I-thank you. But, it wasn't really resourceful, that's how you stopped Cromartie back in New Mexico. I got the idea from you." He said with a smile.

She smiled back. "Still doesn't mean it wasn't resourceful."

Stacy smiled to herself. _Cute._

"Mom, were back!" John yelled as he entered the front door of the Weaver household, Cameron and Stacy right behind them.

Savannah came in and greeted them all with hugs.

"Hello, Savannah. Have you seen my mom?" John asked.

She nodded with a smile revealing some of her missing teeth.

"I'm here, John." Sarah entered the foyer before Savannah could speak up. She looked at the three and noticed their disheveled appearances. "Savannah, how about you let the grown ups talk for a little bit? Then after that, we can all play a game?"

Savannah smiled and nodded. "Okay, Sarah!" She quietly left the room heading for the basement, most likely to see what John Henry was up to.

"Did you run into it?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah, we got there too late to help Will." John answered softly as Stacy lowered her head.

Stacy looked up. "We did get the supplies though. Will came through, his death wasn't in vain." She tried to make a smile come to her face. She smiled with her mouth, not her eyes.

John put a hand on her shoulder. She mouthed a thank you towards John.

"John electrocuted it. We were able to get away because of John." Cameron told Sarah. Sarah gave John a look. He looked away waiting for "you're too important to be in danger" speech.

But it didn't come.

Sarah needed to start letting go. She reluctantly started now, but she had no choice. She was proud to see her son take initiative, despite the dangers surrounding them, but he was growing into the man he was destined to become. But, Sarah couldn't go on forever. She was falling ill. Even now, standing in the air conditioned foyer she was sweating just talking to the returning trio.

Another bead of sweat traveled down Sarah's face. This one John caught.

"Mom, are you okay? You're sweating in the air conditioning." John knew she would deny it, but he knew what it was and it made him hurt inside.

How could the mother of the future fall ill?

"I'm fine, John. I was exercising outside; the perspiration is just catching up to me." She answered with the typical Sarah Connor toughness in her voice. She looked at the bags.

"More guns?" she asked.

"Guns and some computer equipment, some hard drives, perhaps with some information on the machines." John answered looking intently at his mother. He needed to confront her about this, if not now, soon.

"Good, place it with the rest, we'll be transporting this stuff soon." Sarah left before anyone could say anything. She specifically wanted to avoid John right now. Sarah couldn't talk to John about it. What would she say? With all the other things on his shoulders right now she couldn't bear to add another weight to them. Being the future leader of mankind was enough for now.

John finished unloading the last of the duffel bags with Cameron into a secret compartment in the wall, something Sarah had recently installed in the house, when, John didn't know. To hide something like this from them wasn't a big deal, they needed to hide this stuff for the sake of Savannah.

"You haven't spoken since we started unpacking. What is wrong, John?" Cameron asked concern filled her voice.

"It is my mom. Something is wrong; I think she is still getting sick." He said, his voice struggling to finish the sentence.

Cameron looked at John. "It is quite possible. She has been losing weight, vomiting and sweating excessively."

"Wait, how do you know all of that?" John asked.

"She told me. She told me to promise not to tell you. Sarah doesn't want you to worry about her." Cameron's face was full of guilt her keeping a secret.

John looked at right at Cameron, his lips pressed together forcefully and eyebrows scrunched closer together.

"I'm sorry, John." Cameron said lowering her head. "I'm sorry I kept this secret from you."

Her voice lightened John. The intensity lowered from his face and he stepped closer to Cameron.

"Its okay, Cameron." He gave her a kiss on the top of her head. "I'm not upset at you."

"You care for you mother, humans cannot control their emotions when it comes to their love ones." She answered quite technically.

Despite the solemn subject he dropped a small smile at her textbook answer.

"Yeah." He answered.

This time Cameron placed a kiss on the top of his head and placed a hand on his neck.

He looked up at her. "Thanks, Cameron."

"You're welcome." She whispered.

* * *

Savannah picked up another Lego block and attached it to the others that John Henry had put together.

"I think the castle is comin' together very fast, John Henry." Savannah said with a missing teeth smile.

"Yes, Savannah. We are working very efficiently." John Henry corrected her.

"Effic-effic" she tried to pronounce the word with some frustration developing. John Henry smiled at her

"Efficiently." he said with slower and with more articulation. "It means to perform or work in the best possible manner, to waste little time."

"Oh… Okay! I get it! Effishuntly!" she smiled butchered the word just a little, she questionably smirked at the word again.

John Henry smiled at her placing another Lego on their castle. "Its okay, Savannah."

She returned his smile and placed a flag shaped piece on the tower of the castle.

"Hello, John Henry. Hello, Savannah." Catherine Weaver said acknowledging the two as she entered the basement.

"Good morning, Ms. Weaver."

"Good morning, mommy."

Catherine looked at the castle.

"How long have you two been working on this?" Catherine asked.

"We started it last night, but stopped at Savannah's bed time. We resumed this morning with a break for lunch." John Henry answered with another odd smile while placing another block connecting the drawbridge to the rest of the castle.

"Savannah, I think Ms. Connor has something for you. How about you go upstairs and see what it is?" she asked her placing a hand on her shoulders.

She smiled and headed for the stairs. "I'll be back, John Henry!" she continued up the stairs.

John Henry watched her go up the stairs and then looked at Catherine Weaver.

"Does she really have something or did you just need to talk to me?" he asked her tilting his head.

"She does and I do need to talk to you." She responded taking Savannah's seat.

John Henry smiled. "You are learning how to treat her like a daughter." He looked right at her. "That's progress."

"I suppose it is." She answered. "Now, the Connors has been able to collect enough weapons to fill a couple of the fall out shelters. They should put their supplies their soon, perhaps as a way to trap the terminator on their trail."

"I agree, Ms. Weaver. The terminator on their tail is a definite danger, especially if it can make its way here. Ambushing it in the desert where these fall out shelters are located would be ideal for concealing the endoskeleton and using the weapons they have received." John Henry looked up towards the monitor. It popped up several windows, the last one showing the coordinates for one of the bunkers. "This one is the closest and is near the last Resistance member. Perhaps, Cameron and John could head towards him while Stacy and Sarah wait for them at the bunker, waiting to ambush the pursuing terminator."

"That would be risky, but it will have to do. If need be, I will also accompany Mr. Connor." She stood up and headed for the stairs. "Good bye, John Henry."

"Good bye, Ms. Weaver." He responded.

Foot steps going up were covered by fast moving steps going down the stairs. John Henry looked at Savannah who came in wearing a big smile.

"Mommy was right! Ms. Connor got me another stuffed animal! See?" She showed it to John Henry. "It's a bunny!" she hugged it closed to herself and placed it on the table petting it several times.

John Henry's hand made its way towards the stuffed animal. He gently placed his hand over and petted it. Its ears were pushed down as his huge hand moved across the head of the stuffed animal.

He smiled. Catherine seemed to gain points when it came to emotional mimicry, or was it development? Caring for a human girl was quite unlike the T-1001. Most of it had to do with Savannah's potential role in the future, but nevertheless she had been treating her more like a daughter.

"It is very nice." John Henry told Savannah. "Shall we continue building the castle now?" he asked.

She smiled and nodded her head exaggeratingly.

He picked up another piece and snapped it into place.

* * *

The Connors, Cameron, and Stacy made their way down to the basement to find Catherine Weaver and John Henry waiting for them. Catherine said it was important, but what was it?

"We're here, what's the news?" Sarah asked staring at the Lego castle on the table.

"After the last supply pick up we think it would be wise to bring the supplies to one of the bunkers." Catherine explained.

"We still have one more Resistance member to see." John interjected. "What about that… what's the name?" he asked.

"His name is Jason Marks; he is a soldier from Kansas Bunker." John Henry answered with his trademark odd smile on his face.

"Alright, so, after we see this guy we'll drop start spreading out supplies through these bunkers?" Stacy asked.

"Not exactly, John and Cameron will visit the Resistance member with hopes of luring the terminator out, with the supplies they will travel to the bunker bringing it into a trap that Sarah and Stacy will have set." Catherine explained with a smirk on her face.

"You want my son to lure a terminator, with mission parameters to kill him to chase my son towards us? Are you insane?" Sarah raised her voice. "What the hell kind of trap do you want us to set?" Sarah criticized the plan, with all the reason, the safety of her son.

"Ms. Connor, your son is the future of the human race. One machine will not take him down. He's more resilient than that. Cameron will also be with him, Ms. Connor." She said turning her back towards them. "As for the trap, you'll use these." Catherine took out a bullet. "These are Mk.211 Raufoss round."

"Tungsten core, armor piercing, and with an explosive incendiary. Aim for the chip, mom." John finished Catherine's sentence. "It'll take it down and make it reconsider its life's choices." John added.

Sarah grimaced. The last thing she wanted to do is put her son in danger, again… ever since their failed Skynet raid she was anything but willing to let her son in danger. But, she had to let go. Danger was inevitable for John and he'd grown through the adversity of the precarious situations he found himself in. Being the future leader of mankind wasn't without its responsibilities. She wasn't stupid, she knew this, but she had to let go, she wouldn't be around forever.

"Let's do this, but Cameron, you better watch my son otherwise they'll be hell to pay." Sarah said looking right at Cameron with the "do what I tell you mom look".

"If something happens to John, I'll let you destroy my chip." Cameron answered.

John nodded. "Alright, well let's get the supplies together. Make sure you grab the Barrett M82 rifles, we need to give that terminator a hell of a surprise."

Stacy nodded. "You got it, sir. I mean, John." She headed for the stairs.

Sarah walked up to her son. "You can handle this?"

He nodded at her. "I'll be okay, mom. I can do this, I need to do this. If I'm going to save mankind one day, I need to get some practice doing it."

She smiled and placed a kiss on his head. She headed for the stairs to help Stacy.

Cameron walked up to John staring at him. "Are you ready to do this?"

He looked at Cameron with a smile. "Yeah…" he paused for a moment looking away. His eyes soon met with Cameron's again.

"I think that flak jacket my mom got me for my birthday is going to come in handy."

Cameron smiled at him. "I told you it was a tight present."


	23. Highway and Desert Chase

_I think this chapter is the most action packed I've written._

_I've had quite the disappointing few days. My car died yesterday, which will make commuting to school difficult._

_I hope everyone is having a good day/week... anyway... here is the next chapter._

_Enjoy._

* * *

Chapter 23: Highway and Desert Chase

The sun rose and started to shine through the window of John and Cameron's room. The sun blanketed John's face, but it didn't wake him up. He was already awake. Cameron stared at him intently, rubbing her fingertips across his arm. He lifted his hand and connected his fingertips with hers. Air escaped through John's lips.

"This is going to be dangerous, John." Cameron whispered, the back of their hands caressing each others.

"I know it will be." He whispered back to her, his fingers drawing circles on her palm.

"You can feel this?" he asked continuing to draw circles on her palm.

"Yes." She whispered back looking straight at him; she was a little perplexed by his statement.

"And this?" he placed a kiss on her hand and blew air through her fingers.

"You know I do. What are you trying to do?" she asked quizzically.

"I'm helping feel what it's like to get away from it all." He said with a smirk on his face.

She responded with her own smirk back. "Well, I don't think I am." She laughed

He tilted his head much like she did. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you blowing air through my fingers isn't enough for me to feel like I'm getting away…" she started.

John shifted his weight and leaned on his hand, elbow pressing down into the mattress below him. A mischievous smile appeared on his face. "What would do that for you?" he asked innocently.

"You know the answer to that, John." She said with a wink and stood up with John following after her.

"Let me guess… it is time to go?" he asked with disappointment in his voice. Cameron shouldn't get him riled up before a dangerous task.

"Yes, it's time to go." She answered. "You ready?"

John picked up the gun on the end table. He unloaded it and reloaded it in one swift motion.

"Ready."

Sarah and Stacy started removing the various weapons from the truck and started moving them into the bunker.

"How are we going to keep this stuff safe out here?" Stacy asked coming out of the entrance heading towards the truck.

"John Henry constructed some keypads for us to install. This bunker is a nuclear fallout shelter; these doors aren't moving for anybody. It'll be safe after we… well John installs this keypad lock. I'm not too good with this stuff." Sarah trailed off, wiping more sweat off her head.

Stacy nodded. "You feeling okay? You've been sweating before we stepped out in this desert."

Sarah avoided the subject. "I'm fine." She closed her eyes a breeze hit her face.

Stacy's blond hair blew into her face; she looked intently at Sarah, perhaps waiting for a different answer.

"I said I'm fine. That's all you're getting out of me." Sarah said with a slight irritation in her face.

Stacy nervously nodded and headed for the truck grabbing another duffel bag full of weapons. Heaven forbid crossing the line with Sarah Connor.

Sarah sighed; her temper was always short but never this short. To add to it she felt like complete shit. The sweating and nausea may come in waves, but the waves rivaled to a tsunami every time.

"That was the last one, Sarah." Stacy told her with some restrain in her voice, still nervous of the short fuse of Sarah Connor.

She smiled slightly and nodded. "Let's get those rifles ready. We need to help John as soon as we can."

She couldn't worry about her own well being, she wouldn't be around forever, but she would stay as long as she could to help her son. That's all that matter.

* * *

Cameron and John exited the truck. It seemed like a routine now to John. Arrive, get shot at, and leave with weapons for the post-apocalyptic future. Luckily, this was the last one, but with the terminator hot on their trail it was still dangerous.

Cameron walked in front of him.

"Cameron, you don't have to cover me." He told her with an annoyed tone.

"Just because I let you participate in danger doesn't mean I'm not going to protect you." Cameron turned around. "Plus, do you want your mother to destroy my chip if you get hurt in any way?"

"Good point." He told her.

Walking through the lobby the two headed for the elevator, again feeling routine John pressed the up button anxiously waiting for the elevator to make its way to their floor.

John kept his eyes peeled, that terminator could be anywhere within the vicinity. Cameron had been scanning before they even made their way into the apartment complex.

"So far no threats, John." She said as the elevator beeped and the doors opened.

They entered and headed toward their floor. Cameron put her arm up telling John to wait, she peered her head out of the elevator.

"Clear." She whispered.

The two stayed close to the walls and headed down the hallway, Cameron in front with John trailing behind.

"Which room is it?" John asked.

"224. It should be coming up according to this building configuration." Cameron answered him, she peeked across the corner. They continued down the "L" shaped hallway.

"Here it is." Cameron told John as she stepped in front of the door.

John jiggled the door handle. It was locked. He hated doing this, knocking waiting for an uncertain answer. It would be easier if he could announce he was the future leader of mankind to the occupant.

He knocked on the door and waited for an answer. None came; he looked at Cameron who knew what to do. She unsheathed her gun from her waistband and effortlessly opened the door, a loud crack accompanying the wood snapping.

John took out his pistol and entered behind Cameron. She looked around the room scanning for threats. Her HUD flashed.

"Body in the corner, John." Cameron tilted her in the position of the body, the two made their way to it.

Cameron got on her knees and checked his pulse, nothing.

"He's dead, John." Cameron looked up at John who sighed.

"Damn it. We're too late." John's face grew dim, another death for John Connor.

He wasn't going to die in vain, they were going to find his supplies and successfully stash them away for the war.

But where were they?

John started to pound away at the wall, hoping to find weapons hidden behind it like the last time.

It was starting to feel like a routine.

Cameron tilted her head.

"John, there isn't anything behind that wall." She told him.

She did an in depth scan of the apartment.

"In fact, I can't find anything in here." She stated.

John's face scrunched with confusion. "What?"

"That means…" she was cut off by John.

"It has them." They both headed out of the apartment and headed for the stairs.

* * *

The two opened the door and headed outside. John squinted as the sun shined brightly down on him.

A roar of an engine sounded through their ears, a car appeared from around the corner and sped towards them.

Cameron tilted her head.

"Get down, John." She pushed him down behind their truck and pulled out her gun.

Shots fired and collided against their truck. It was him, Cameron opened fire as the car drove away.

"Get in." she yelled as she jumped into the car and started the engine.

John got to his feet and entered the truck.

Cameron steadily picked up as their truck got close to the battered car of the terminator.

"Shouldn't he be chasing us?" John asked, tension bleeding from his voice. Since when would he want a terminator to chase them? When?

"I know, John." Cameron answered fully in her stoic robot form; her hands firmly gripped the steering wheel.

Cameron stepped on the gas and got on the right side of the terminator's vehicle. She stared right into his eyes and stared back. He pulled up a gun, Cameron's eyes grew wide.

"John, get down!" she yelled as shots fired.

The bullets collided with side of the truck and shattered the driver's window. John felt it rain glass onto him and heard more gun fire.

_Cameron._ He thought.

"He's behind us now. Keep your head down." Cameron told John.

He looked up to see Cameron, several bullet wounds on her face. The sleek Coltan endoskeleton complimenting her skin. He sighed, he hated to see her take any form of damage for him. It always made him cringe inside.

"I'm okay, John. Don't worry." She read his mind, or she read the expression on his face.

He nodded and put his head back down; he could feel the truck shift beneath him.

"Where are we going?" John asked rather loudly, with the windows blown out the roar of the engine and the air blowing through the truck made it hard to hear one's self.

"We are at our exit, we are almost there. John Henry was right about the both being very close to each other." She answered him just as loudly he spoke to her.

Another sound of glass crumbling and bullet impact sounded through the truck. John winced as he saw the bullets hit the back of her head.

He felt it more than she did.

Her head didn't even fly forward.

Cameron turned around and opened fire towards the terminator chasing behind him.

They were almost there.

* * *

Sarah sat on top of the bunker entrance, waiting for the terminator with her sniper rifle. The incendiary round would effectively terminate the T-888, as along as she nailed it in the head at the chip.

Another bead of sweat dripped down her head onto the butt of the gun. Now the heat was in full swing and she was really sweating now, her clothes stuck to her skin. She always hated that feeling, she was used to being shot, but sweaty clothes were always horribly displeasing.

"Where the hell are they?" she asked with her impatient mother voice kicking in.

Stacy popped out of the door. "They'll be here, don't worry."

"I sure hope so." She whispered.

"The Generals never disappointed in the future, they'll be here."

"I sure hope so." Sarah repeated.

Why did she have to start to let go?

Another sharp turn and the honking of other cars on the road were starting to get to John.

"We almost there yet? I kind of want to get out and fire on some terminators." He sarcastically said.

Cameron shot a glare at him. "Almost, John."

John watched as sand flew onto the sides of the truck, they were entering the desert; it was only a manner of time before they reunite with his mother and Stacy. The turbulence inside the truck increase, he knew that they were no longer on a solid road, but he could hear something following them, that terminator was behind them as well.

Sarah looked up, she heard something.

It was them. She knew it, her mother's instinct kicked in, her son was near. She knocked on the bunker she laid upon.

"Stacy, there coming, get your weapon ready." She yelled.

She heard a muffled "uh-huh" come from the inside the bunker.

Sarah could see sand being disturbed in the distance.

"Only a terminator could cause destruction in a barren desert." She muttered to herself.

John jumped into the back of the truck and grabbed the sniper rifle.

_It'll make it reconsider its life's choices._ The words of his uncle reverberated through his mind. He cocked the rifle and waited in the back sit as the bunker made itself more visible.

"We are almost there, John. Are you ready?" Cameron said over the noise of the sand colliding with the wheels of their truck.

He nodded towards Cameron and cradled the rifle in his hands.

Cameron pulled on the emergency brake and stepped on the brake pedal. John opened the passenger door and rolled out of the truck, he hit the sand and coughed on impact.

_Harder than I thought._ He rolled in the sand and watched the terminator's car drive pass him, the red eyes looked straight at him until the impact.

He collided into their black truck.

Cameron stepped out and opened fire onto the car, unaffected he stepped out and headed towards Cameron. The terminator dropped his gun and grabbed Cameron's arms, but she powered out of it, trapping his arms underneath hers. The sound of metal against metal echoed through the desert.

John shook his head and grasped the rifle as he peeked above the black weapon. He watched Cameron was thrown into their truck. He looked away to see his mother on the bunker taking aim.

Sarah tried to hold the reticule still, her ill state and the sun beating down on her was having its adverse affects. She closed her left eye and aimed carefully.

"Damn it, Cameron." She cursed. "Get the hell out of the way."

Cameron definitely heard her as she kicked the terminator and tripped him and moved out of the way in one swift motion. The terminator sat up and the rifle fired.

The round exploded, but the terminator stood up, his right arm gone.

"Shit!" Sarah cursed again.

Stacy kicked the door open and fired on the terminator. It came closer.

"Sarah, you better take another shot!" Stacy yelled.

Cameron went for the terminator again, but he was one step ahead of her. He used her momentum against her and threw her through the truck; she rolled onto the sand next to John.

"Cameron!" he yelled. She slowly got to her feet.

John stood up and opened fire on terminator, it picked up his gun and looked straight at John.

It opened fire.

John bounced back onto the floor as the bullet hit his chest.

Cameron's HUD blurred and her ears filled with the sound of Sarah's voice and gunfire.

Cameron grimaced and yelled before running towards the terminator. It placed several bullets into Cameron, but she stayed unaffected, she jumped onto the terminator and punched it repeatedly.

Sarah just watched as Cameron pummeled the terminator with her Coltan fists. She breathed heavily, she didn't have to breathe as a terminator, but she was full of rage, she looked at Sarah, Stacy and then ran to John, her shoulders rising and falling with her deep breaths, her eyes were full of anger and lips were pressed tightly together.

Her rage turned into concern as she picked up John.

"John! John!" she said with tears forming in her eyes, Sarah and Stacy came up towards the two.

"John!" Sarah yelled placing hands on her son's head, her eyes filling with moisture.

"John Jo-" Cameron was cut off by coughing.

John sat up and coughed holding his chest. The three watched him in disbelief.

"John!" Sarah yelled unable to contain her tears. "Are you okay?" Quickly left his mother's mouth.

"I'm okay." John unbuttoned his shirt to reveal the flak jacket that his mother gave him for his birthday.

"Tight present, mom." He coughed with laughter hidden underneath.

Sarah smiled, she was angry, but was glad to see her son was okay and using his head. She wrapped her arms around him tightly.

Cameron however wasn't so pleased. She stood up, her emotions enveloping everything about her.

"Don't do that again, John." She cried. "You scared the hell out of me!" She wiped her eyes.

"Cameron…"

She was gone, into the bunker to start collecting the rest of the weapons.

"She's mad, but you're not mad?" John shook his head and looked at his mother.

"I'm pissed; you better not do that again, John Connor." Sarah stood up giving him that "mother" look as she headed towards the terminator's car.

* * *

The ride home for John and Cameron was silent. She was still mad at John for putting himself in danger to help her.

Her emotions were conflicting.

She felt angry because John put himself at risk, it was typical of her objective and her programming, but she felt touched at the same time and felt warm inside. John cared and loved her and it made her want to smile, give him a hug and a kiss, but she had to stand her ground. He shouldn't put himself in such reckless danger.

He sighed. "Cameron, do you want to do something after we get back… you know… hang out?" he stuttered, he felt stupid asking that. They just faced death and one of Skynet's many drones.

She kept her eyes on the road. "I'm busy."

John rolled his eyes. Great, a terminator holding a grudge. "With what?" He asked accusingly.

"Self repair." She muttered.

John didn't respond quickly. It was a valid point she made, she did take some damage against that terminator.

Living with women helped John understand them; he kept his mouth shut and swallowed his pride. He wanted to mend this situation with Cameron, not make it worse. It bit the bullet and drove him in complete silence. Cameron didn't even turn on the radio for her usual female lead vocal rock music; she shot stares at John when he tried for the dial. It was silence for the rest of the way home.

* * *

Cameron quickly walked into the house and headed towards her room. A door slammed and John winced at the sound that traveled through the entire house.

"She still mad?" Stacy asked walking through into the house.

"Yes." John stated coldly, he wasn't in the mood for obvious statements.

Stacy tilted her head, her blonde hair conforming to her movements.

"Well you're gonna have to make it up to her." She responded.

John removed his hand from his mouth. "I know what to do. I'll need your help though." He smiled.

He headed for his room and put his hand on the door, but it opened before he could do it himself, Cameron walked briskly pass him with her first aid kit and tool box, with self repair on the mind. She didn't bother to look at John which he noticed. He headed in and grabbed what he needed and walked out. Stacy waited for him at the door.

"Let's go." John said.

Stacy shook her head. "You wait to go now?" she criticized. "You just got chased by a terminator and shot in the chest. Don't you want to rest?" she placed a hand on her hips.

He shook his head in response. "No." He headed for the door.

* * *

John and Stacy walked into a jewelers, a welcome change from old apartment buildings and deserts full of terminators and weapons.

John headed towards the glass cabinet and looked at the jewelry. His reflection in the glass revealing a teenaged boy with quite a few cuts on his face.

_Maybe I should've rested for a few minutes._ He thought to himself.

"May help you, son?" the old man behind the cabinet asked.

John looked up quickly with his mouth half open. "Yeah… I would like to get a ring made with this diamond." He took the diamond out of his pocket and placed it on the glass.

He picked up the diamond and lowered his thick black glasses; the wrinkles in his forehead became more apparent as he squinted.

"This is quite the rock you got here. Is she the lucky lady?" he asked looking at Stacy.

John smiled. "No, it's someone else. She's my uhh… consultant." Stacy blushed at that assumption.

Stacy looked at the ring makes in the glass cabinet. She smiled.

"That one, John. Get that one." She pointed.

He nodded in consent with a smile growing on his face. That was the one.

"Good choice, son. What is the ring size?" he asked.

"What?"

"What is the lucky lady's ring size?" he asked him again. "I need to know that to get the ring just right. You don't want it falling off her finger or not fitting at all." He fixed his glasses with his index finger.

John looked at Stacy. She smiled at him. "Size 5." The man nodded.

"This will be done in a week or so." He looked at the diamond again. "Have a nice day."

"A week?" he whispered at Stacy. He wasn't expecting that.

"Of course, John. You think that would take a couple of hours?" Stacy answered.

"Yeah… I guess… I don't really know how long it takes rings to be made." He responded. Even when he got that ring made for his mother with Charley, he didn't comprehend how long it took. He assumed it was quick and then Charley waited for the right time to give it to his mother. He never thought of the possibility of it taking a couple of weeks. That thought doesn't wonder into the mind of a fifteen year old boy.

The two walked out of the store. He'd have to find another way to cheer Cameron up before the ring was ready.

"So, you picked the band pretty quickly." John pointed out. "You've seen the ring in the future?"

"Yeah, I did. A lot actually. Cameron showed it to me sometimes when things got tough around the base, or if she missed you." She smiled. The smile soon disappeared. "I knew the ring size and everything, she told me." She looked down to the ground. "I really envied that ring so much and what you and she had, well have. I didn't have too much in the future, but you two gave everyone hope, it radiated from you and fell onto everyone else. But, it is lonely in the future, love is hard to find." A melancholy smile accompanied her lamenting.

John gave her a caring look. This was the first time Stacy really opened up, but he could tell that she wasn't always cheerful; she was just as torn up and jaded from the war as any other soldier.

Is this what was in store for him in the future, grief, sorrow, misery, bottling emotions?

"Even at the bleakest times, you gave us hope, John." She reiterated with a smile.

John forced a smile, people talking about him in the "future" tense always got to him.

_I'm not who they think I am. Some messiah…_ the words echoed through his head.

"How do the people view me in the future?" he asked.

"If you're asking that they agree with you with everything. No, everyone has opinions and you're human too, but we all love you, John." She said with a smile.

He smiled back. _I'm human too._ Despite the fact that not everyone agreed with him, it made him relieved. It wasn't on some hierarchal pedestal. He didn't think he could deal with that. Sure, he would become leader and rank would be apparent, but he couldn't some kind of untouchable being.

"We're all human. That's what makes us different from them." He stated.

* * *

John entered the house with Stacy close behind him. He headed for his room where he found Cameron sitting on the bed adding last minute bandages to her wounds.

"Hey." He whispered walking up to her and picking up another bandage to place on her.

"Hello." She answered quickly and coldly. She wasn't in the mood to talk to him just yet.

He placed the bandage gently on her shoulder. She removed his hand from her shoulder and placed pressure on the newly added bandage.

"Sometimes it's nice to have help." He whispered to her taking a sit next to her on the bed, he picked up another bandage, this one with small kittens on it.

Cameron stared at it and tried to restrain a smile.

_People do like small animals._

She turned her head away from John and continued her last minute bandaging. Cameron had to stay firm, but the emotions in her head was confusing her.

She wanted to stay mad at John for putting himself in danger, but was that her programming? Was she annoyed because John was shot, because she almost failed her mission?

She shook her head to herself.

Cameron stole a look at John and wanted to forgive him too. He was caring and even came to help her even though she was almost done. And where did he go? It obviously involved an "apology" for her in someway and she knew it. The most advanced terminator in the world didn't have a problem deducing that one.

John sighed. "Listen, I'm sorry, but I can see you don't want help right now. So I'll leave you alone." He headed for the door and gave her one last look before leaving.

John shook Cameron of her reverie, she watched as John walked out of the room. She looked at the kitten bandage on her right shoulder and grazed her fingers against it softly.

* * *

_There it is. I hope you all enjoyed. Feel free to review, give feedback, or ask questions. Until next time._


	24. The Little Mute Boy

_Hello ladies and gentlemen, I hope everyone is well._

_Sorry that took a while, I had quite a crazy couple of weeks full of life decisions and life altering events. Haha... kind of...._

_Anyway, I hope you all in enjoy this one. I enjoyed writing it._

_Hope to read lovely reviews like the ones I've been getting._

_Anyway, enjoy and I'll be seeing you all soon once again.  
_

* * *

Chapter 24: The Little Mute Boy

John sat in his room looking in the mirror. The gunshot definitely left a mark on his chest even with the flak jacket. John examined the bruise, purple surrounding an obtuse dot of yellow.

"Maybe I should've rested before going back out." He muttered to himself gently rubbing the bruise.

The pain had definitely caught up with him and now it was making circles around him. John walked over to the bed and lied down slowly; small moans escaped his mouth as his head sunk into the pillow.

Everything hit him, the adrenaline from the terminator chase and even from Cameron getting angry at him made him block out everything, but it all came crashing onto him. Waves of pain found their way into his body.

"Err…" escaped his mouth as he placed his hands over his head.

He laid there and his brain rewound everything that happened. John waited for the shock and trauma of a bullet pounding into his chest, but it never came. That scared him. Why did the emotion not come? Did he disconnect it?

He remembered something his mother told him, back in the jungle.

_"Mom… ow" John sniffled rubbing his leg._

_Sarah's mom look fell upon her face. For the first time that day, training was tough and she was particularly hard on him today._

_He needs to be ready. She thought to herself._

_She walked over to her son and placed the rifle down onto the ground._

_"What's wrong, now?" she asked, a tinge of annoyance in her voice. They couldn't afford to slow down now._

_Another sniffle, this one accompanied by a tear. "I fell and I really hurt my knee…" he cried. "Look!" he pointed out._

_Sarah's eyes looked down and saw several trails of blood dropping down his leg, leaving branches of crimson stains. Sarah took her bag off and opened it, John watched as the first aid kit came out, the white box standing out in their environment full of green._

_A bandage revealed itself from the box and a small bottle of hydrogen peroxide. John's face changed from pain to terror as the brown bottle sat in Sarah's left hand._

_"No! That stuff stings!" he yelled._

_Sarah sat calmly next to her son._

_"Want to know what your father did for pain?" she said with a soothing voice._

_He shook his head with his hands rubbing his eyes._

_"He said he disconnected it." Sarah answered, putting a twist on Kyle's words he said to Sarah several years ago._

_John removed his hands from his eyes and looked up at his mother, confusion on his face._

_She smiled. She knew he wouldn't totally understand it, how to explain to a seven year old?_

_"He thought of something else, something happy…" she said twisting Kyle's words even further._

_John grimaced, what made him happy? He looked up at the trees…_

_The familiar sound of a parrot entered his ears. It was that parrot from before, earlier on the trail. John smiled as its red wings flapped. He brought color to the jungle._

_John looked at his mother who was putting the first aid kit back in her bag._

_"Wait… you didn't put my band aid on!" he cried._

_"Yeah I did and the stingy stuff too. Look for yourself." She told him with a small smile._

_John focused on his leg, the marks of blood were still visible, but on his knee sat a white bandage. He didn't feel one thing._

_"You thought of something happy." She whispered. "Come on, we have more to do." She gave a kiss on the forehead and picked him up._

John opened his eyes and saw the figure of Cameron sitting on the bed. He sat up immediately, the sounds of his body moving the sheets the only noise filling the room.

"What did I tell you? My mother does that, it freaks me out." He scolded her, he was nervous. What was she doing here? They were technically not on "good terms" right now.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." She said, she looked away from John and stood up. Cameron started for the door.

John's face filled with confusion. "Wait…" he had to think of something to say. "uhh.. where are you going?" He sat up further, waiting for an answer.

"I'm leaving now. I only came to check up on you. That's it." She answered rather coldly.

John winced, she was still mad. He wasn't going to push; she'd forgive him when she was ready. He couldn't change the mind of a terminator. The room was saturated with silence, John watched Cameron turn around and leave the room.

He felt a tinge of pain from his chest again. His right eye squinted at the pain and he placed a hand on his chest, he felt a bandage stuck to his chest. He looked with a quizzical look and saw a bandage complete with kittens on them.

_Cameron._ He thought to himself.

* * *

Cameron walked into Sarah's room with a pitcher of water, discolored by powdered nutrients. She placed the tray down on the table next to her and poured her a glass. Sarah looked up at her; she was covered in sweat, yet was covered in her sheets. She was cold, very cold.

"Drink this; it should help with the fever." Cameron told her handing her the drink, her hand trembling holding the glass, the liquid inside shaking inside of its glass chamber. Cameron tilted her head.

"You're weak; you're having trouble holding the glass." She pointed out rather bluntly.

Sarah let out a sigh of annoyance. "I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine, I just have a fever." She spoke coldly. "Why don't you go bother, John?"

"I'm mad at him." Cameron answered back quickly. She poured Sarah another glass after she finished the first one.

"Still mad at him?" Sarah forced a smile.

Cameron placed the glass on the table, a small sound echoing through Sarah's ears. She watched as the condensation traveled down the glass and made contact with the table. Sarah stared at it, not hearing Cameron's answer.

"Yes." She replied staring at Sarah. "Yes, Sarah. I am still mad at him." She said it again.

Sarah shook her head. "Sorry… I…" she looked up at Cameron. "Why are you still mad?"

Cameron looked at Sarah, focused on her. "To be honest, I don't know. I've never felt emotions like this before. I'm angry that he put himself in danger, but… I'm…" she tried to find the right word.

"You're touched that he put himself in danger for you." Sarah said, she still wasn't used to John's affections for a machine, not completely anyway.

Cameron's eyes found themselves back towards Sarah. "Yes, I am. I don't know what to do." Cameron leaned against the wall, almost dejected from her conflicting emotions.

Sarah's mouth went agape; Cameron continued to surprise her, with her arsenal of emotions that she didn't mimic, that she felt completely.

It was Sarah's turn to play mother back to the cyborg. She stared at the wall behind Cameron thinking of an answer. What should she say? She never had to give "teenage girl relationship" advice to an advanced killing machine… about her own son to top it all off.

"If you want my opinion…" she stopped to think one more time. "Don't let him off too easy, Cameron. If you want him to know you're mad you need to show him. I know I am… he shouldn't be so careless. But, you can't be too uncaring; you need to show him that you still care about him." Sarah's head tilted in another direction. "It's a difficult balance. If you upset him too much, he'll get just as angry. You want to know you're upset and put him on a guilt trip, not anger him."

Cameron tilted her head, a new slue of information entering her head and she processed it, but comprehension was proving difficult.

"How do I show this emotion?" she asked innocently.

"Don't talk to him, silent treatment always helps, you know the cold shoulder?"

"My shoulder isn't cold though, it is 76 degrees outside today." Cameron answered.

"No, cold shoulder means to ignore someone." Sarah explained.

"Oh, thank you for explaining." Cameron answered. Cameron's eyes went back to Sarah. "If we were both mad, wouldn't he get the point quicker?" another innocent question escaped her lips.

"I am mad, but he… he won't have me around as his mother forever. Also… children don't always listen to their mothers; you've seen him be defiant." Sarah paused before starting again; this was going to be hard to spit out. "He'll listen to you; he's…in…." She stopped there, she couldn't say that word. "He's devoted to you… just as you are to him, most importantly you'll be there with him in future."

Cameron was devoted to John. Sarah knew this; her spoken reverie to Cameron reminded her of internal one about "Uncle Bob" as John coined him. That machine was devoted to John; it would protect him no matter what, never hurt him, or yell at him. She accepted that terminator in John's… their lives, why couldn't she fully accept Cameron into John's?

_In an insane world, it was the sanest choice._

Sarah looked up at Cameron whose face was of emotion and uncontainable smile. How can a machine fake show genuine emotions?

"Thank you, Sarah." She spoke softly. Sarah may have not directly said anything about acceptance and she would never admit it aloud, but it was good enough for Cameron.

Sarah lips shaped into a smirk and she softly nodded at Cameron who poured another glass of the liquid.

"Yeah… I want one more glass of that."

* * *

John headed towards the porch in the back of the house; he needed some fresh air to take his mind off… well a lot of things. Cameron's coldness and the pain in his chest. He opened the glass door; closing it behind him he leaned against the railing and took a deep breath.

He understood why Cameron was angry, he put himself in danger when Cameron clearly could've taken the punishment, but he did think ahead with the flak jacket. However, that wasn't an excuse. He put himself in unnecessary danger and his mother and Cameron were now angry.

His mother.

Her anger didn't worry him as much as Cameron's; it was her state of health. She tried her best from hiding it, but he knew better. She was sick. How long until she admitted to him? It bothered him now, but coming from her mouth… he didn't know how he would react. He couldn't comprehend losing her.

"Hey. How are you holding up?" his thoughts came to a halt at the sound of Stacy's voice.

He looked at her with surprise written on his face. "I'm.. I'm alright." He said rather quickly.

She smiled. "Hmm.. I disturbed your thoughts. I'm sorry." She apologized.

"No, it's fine really, I could use some company." Silence re-enveloped the porch as the two just stood there, thinking of something to say.

"So, Cameron still mad at you?" she asked John rather bluntly. Perhaps company was counter productive to getting his mind away from Cameron and motherly thoughts…

"Yeah… but, it'll be okay. I'm trying to think of something to do for her, a special date or something since that ring will take a week or so to be completed." He responded looking at her.

"Well don't look at me for dates… we didn't really have dates in the future." She trailed off. "I went on one I guess…"

"Yeah? In the future?" John asked.

She nodded slowly and looked away, a sense of melancholy hit John. He had hit a nerve.

"I'm sorry… if you don't want to talk about it." He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"No, it's okay. He was a soldier, a commanding officer. His name was David Lynch. He was so handsome." A smile replaced her solemn look. "Ever go on a date with plasma rifles in your hand?"

"No, but Cameron always has her 9mm with her." He laughed.

"David took us passed the minefield…" she was interrupted.

"Minefield?" John asked.

"Yeah, you had a minefield constructed at Serrano Point, the Connor Camp, and well, everywhere else. The mines were magnetic and attached to any metal trying to infiltrate our defenses. They never got back up." She answered.

_I did that?_ John thought. He couldn't believe coming up with something so… well useful in a destructive manner. It kind of made him proud, maybe he could lead the entire human race in a war against a sentient computer system.

"He took me out and we gazed at the stars. They were beautiful, the sky was clear for once. We could see the moon and the usual desolate cloud that covers the sky was non-existent that one night." Her smile faded though. "He was killed the next day, a terminator went rogue in our base and he died saving some civilians. Cameron destroyed that metal bastard."

"It went rogue?" he asked.

"Yeah, it killed several officers and almost killed Lieutenant Reese. Cameron saved him though." She smiled at him.

John's mouth was open. "Reese?" he asked.

"Yes, Derek Reese." She answered. "Why?"

_He's my uncle._ "He was sent back by me. He's… he's gone." It was John's turn for melancholy.

Stacy placed a hand on his shoulder this time. He gave her a small smile in response.

Cameron watched the two interact from the other side of the glass door. She was confused and was jealous of Stacy.

She knew John would never do anything with another woman, and she knew Stacy from the future as well. Stacy only admired their relationship. But, Cameron wanted to be there to comfort John, she wanted to stand out there with John, but she was mad at him. Was she still mad at him? These complex emotions confused her. She longed for John, but she was angry. How angry was she still? Pretty angry, but she missed John. She missed John holding her and she missed talking with him, she missed everything. Cameron watched as John and Stacy exchanged smiles and their mouth grew with happiness and laughter.

She placed her fingers on the glass, a longing on her face. She touched the glass where John was before leaving for their room.

* * *

John entered his mother's room and leaned against the door frame. Her back was towards John and he watched as the sheets covering her rose up slowly and back down just as smoothly. He smiled to see her in such a tranquil state; it had been too long since she was asleep or calm in any way for that matter.

He walked up to her slowly and gazed down upon her. She had a film of sweat on her face. He grimaced at this, she'd be sweating for days now, she couldn't keep up with her body, and she couldn't drink enough water without feeling sick. John picked up the wash cloth on the end table and dabbed it on her mother's forehead, removing the sweat from her face.

He was worried, he was really worried. His mother was sick and a doctor wasn't really an obtainable answer right now. John placed the moist rag back on the table and poured his mother another glass. He headed for the door, but stopped at the sound of his mother's voice.

"John." Sarah whispered.

He turned around and hastily headed to his mother's side. "Mom?" he asked with concern filling his voice. "How are you feeling?"

"Like complete shit." She answered a cough accompanying her vocal response.

He picked up the glass and handed it to his mother.

She shook her hand. "No more. Cameron poured me five cups of it."

He smiled and placed the glass back onto the table.

"Seriously, mom, how are you feeling?" he asked again, hoping to get much needed closure out of his mother.

She paused and looked away from her son, how do you tell your only son that her fate is sealed?

John looked at his mother intently, waiting for an answer. Unfortunately he already knew the answer, he knew what was going to become.

"I'm sick… I'm sick…" she whispered. The conversation was quick, just as the Connors did things, she didn't want to hide it anymore. Sarah Connor was always direct.

"Mom…" John spoke quietly in response.

"There's nothing we can do." She told him, desperately holding back tears.

John ran up to her and grasped her in his arms, hugging her tightly. She couldn't hold her tears back anymore, she cried. Her tears stained John's shirt, she put her arms around him. Her robe tickled John's arms as hers wrapped around him. The sound of her whimpers caused John to react in the exact same way. He shared tears with his mother.

"I'm so sorry, John." She cried. "It's my fate, John. It's my fate."

John held her tightly. "Mom…" he whispered, he couldn't complete a full sentence, or a complete thought.

"I love you, John. I'm proud of you, John." She told him, coughing in between.

"I love you, too." He answered, not letting go of his mother, tears escaping his eyes. He couldn't hold it anymore.

He knew what the result would be, but the impact hurt just as much still.

* * *

John brought his pillow close and clutched it in his arms. With the lights completely off, John laid in bed in complete darkness. He didn't want to see anyone; the news of his mother's sealed fate echoed through his head and wouldn't escape. Her words constantly replayed in his head and her actions permanently etched in his brain.

A sniffle and a wipe of his nose betrayed his position, as he felt the bed sink down near his feet. A hand tickled his leg through the fabric.

"Cameron?" he sniffled looking up, he could barely make out her silhouette in the complete dark.

"Yes." She simply responded. Her hand rubbed his leg, up and down she continued.

Cameron looked at John; she could see him perfectly in the dark, being a terminator had its advantages. She frowned; John was in pain, his face was clear to read.

"I'm sorry, John. I'm sorry." It was she could say. What could she say? Cameron couldn't fix this.

John said nothing. He didn't know what to say to her or about the situation. He just knew it hurt him inside; his mother was dying, not by the hands of a terminator, the plans of Skynet, by cancer.

How could he survive without his mother? The one who had trained him, the one who always believed in him and knew what he would become. How could he establish himself after Judgment Day without her? John knew his mother wouldn't be with him forever, but this was too soon for him.

But he had Cameron. Cameron would be there and would help him with everything, she was devoted, and he knew this. But, even though it wouldn't last, she was mad at him right now.

"Why are you here?" he asked softly.

Cameron looked up at him and stared.

"Why are you here with me? Aren't you mad at me?" he asked her again with more assertiveness in his voice.

"I may be angry with you, but it doesn't mean you don't deserve comfort right now." She responded.

She was right.

"I'm not programmed to be cruel." She added, rubbing John's leg.

She crawled up next to him and put an arm in the space between his neck and the pillow, her other arm wrapped around him. She brought him a little closer.

"Thank you, Cameron." He whispered looking at her behind him.

"You're welcome." She responded.

* * *

Sarah moved in her sleep, her eyes rapidly moving in her head. Her head was anything but calm right now.

_Sarah watched as her son looked at her, he opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Only the sound of crickets could be heard in their surroundings. Sarah ran up to him and shook him, trying to get a word out of him, but nothing came out. The sounds of crickets increased._

_He walked away from her, she grabbed at him, but he became transparent, her hand went right through him. Sarah cried as her son gave in, she looked again to see her son standing next to a metallic looking cricket, the sound was now unbearable. John bowed and put his arms out, it enveloped him._

_Sarah screamed at her son._

_"John!" she yelled._

_The Coltan cricket turned towards Sarah and wagged its finger. A golden band shined on its finger, it was a ring. The eyes grew red, but Sarah ignored the menacing eyes, she could hear something faint emanating from the metal cricket's ring. She knew that voice, it was the voice of the future, the savior, it was her son's._

_"Mom…" she could hear him whisper._

_It came from the ring. But, it was too late. Her son was gone; his voice soon went with it._

_The little boy was looking for his voice. The King of Crickets had it…_

Sarah awoke violently, drenched in sweat and heaving at her nightmare.

Sarah looked down on the floor to see her glass on the floor shattered, the liquid all over the floor.

_In a drop of water  
the little boy was looking for his voice.  


* * *

_

_I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. The last part with Sarah's dream is loosely based off a poem by Garcia Lorca. It is about how a mother loses a child._

_Until next time..._


	25. In the Arms of a Cyborg

_That took a while. I am sorry about that. It's been crazy for me as usual._

_I hope you all enjoy. A lot happens in this one and I had a tough time with this one._

_Anyway, read on and stuff._

_Enjoy  
_

* * *

Chapter 25: In the Arms of a Cyborg

"This is the last piece of equipment." John muttered towards Cameron as he wiped his forehead of the next wave of perspiration that formed on his head. He walked out of the bunker and closed the door.

Cameron typed in several numbers into the newly installed keypad. It blinked a bright green and then locked. She turned around to look at John.

"Ready to go?" he said in between breaths. He wiped his head again with his black sleeve to stop the next round of sweat.

She nodded and they both a newly purchased black SUV, courtesy of Catherine Weaver. The shine from the new finish shined into John's eyes as he entered. The engine roared and they took off back home.

John sighed to himself. His mind was still anything but calm. With the admittance from his mother that she was sick and the aftermath of the terminator attack, specifically the fallout between him and Cameron was still constant sources of melancholy. She said she wasn't upset at him anymore and she accepted his apology, but the guilt still lingered within him. He wasn't able to take her stargazing like Stacy suggested and the ring wasn't ready yet.

"Are you okay? You haven't spoken in five and a half minutes." Cameron spoke up, still looking at the road.

John placed his face on his fist, which was leaning on the door.

"I'm fine." He whispered. His mind occupied on the objects they passed on their ride home.

She frowned at his obvious lie, but kept her eyes on the road.

He observed everything. The trees, the buildings, the people, they crossed the street dodging cars, sat in front of buildings conversing or waiting for the bus stop. They argued with each other in the street. John eyes focused as a mother dragged her spoiled child from the toy store, crying that her mother wouldn't buy her something.

"It won't be here anymore." He whispered.

The whisper would have anyone else ask for John to repeat it, but Cameron heard it.

"Yes, it won't be here anymore." She answered him.

John sighed at her relative stoic response. He looked at her this time, taking his eyes off the surroundings.

"Why? Why does everything have to go?"

"You know the answer to that, John. I don't need to tell you it." Cameron told him, a little confused at his small outbursts.

"Skynet. Yeah, I know." He answered, a vicious tone escaping his mouth.

Cameron looked at him, her eyebrows scrunched. She was starting to get annoyed. "What is wrong with you?" she asked, the human emotion exiting her mouth now.

John was taken back by Cameron's tone; he stopped for a minute, and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry I'm being this way, it's just with my mother-" He was cut off.

"You're worried about your mother, I understand John." She finished his thought.

John's mouth was still open, the words still on his tongue. "Yeah, I am." He looked down towards his feet.

"She won't be around forever, John. In the future I came from, she died before the war." Cameron told him, a hurtful truth, but she couldn't sugarcoat the situation.

John shot her a look. "She died before the war?"

"Yes. She did." She answered eyes on the road, hands planted firmly on the jet black steering wheel.

"From cancer?" he asked her, his mouth open and eyes directed towards her. He waited for her answer.

"From cancer." She repeated John's words, confirming his hidden answer.

It made sense though; Cameron must've told his mother that she died from cancer soon after their arrival in 2007. She acted strange after her fate was undisclosed by his cyborg lover. She entered staring contests with the walls and furniture, deep in thought, she would take an endless amount of vitamins. She would disappear at times, probably going to the doctor despite the risk, even with flawless ID's.

The truck pulled up to the Weaver residence, Cameron exited followed by John. The doors' slams filling the silent air around them. John looked up at the blue sky and closed his eyes taking a deep breath. Cameron stopped and turned around, eyes on him.

John's eyes slowly opened to reveal Cameron staring right back at him. Her back was towards him, her head turned right at him.

"Does she die in this timeline?" John asked with a look of desperation on his face.

"I don't know." She answered.

"Is she a bomb waiting to go off?"

"I don't know." She answered again. Cameron remembered being asked that same question by Sarah herself.

How could she know the answers to his questions? He knew she wouldn't. He was being irrational on the whole situation. But wasn't it justified? How long until his mother perished? Another person gone in his life, another to add to the litany he had watched passed. Death held a heavy toll on a human conscience.

His head shifted quickly towards the ground, he stood their stiff as a board. Cameron walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

He shook at the physical contact.

Cameron tilted her head. She remembered when John broke down after Riley's death, she didn't comfort him there. Even with the longing look in his eyes. It confused her; she didn't know what to do.

Now she regretted not letting him cry on her lap at that time, but not this time. She wouldn't miss the opportunity and he needed it. Her free arm wrapped around John and met with the other, bringing John closer to her body. John's arms responded quickly and their bodies connected.

John buried his head into her neck and he felt his eyes moisten up. The fabric of Cameron's shirt absorbed his tears, the color darkened by the liquid. Cameron placed a hand on the back of his head and stroked his hair gently.

"Some leader I am." He whispered into her neck.

"Everyone grieves, in the future, everyone loses someone. That is what makes you human." She answered him.

He removed his head from her shoulder, trails of tears defined on his face. His eyes were lit up with a tint of red, irritated from the tears.

"Crying doesn't mean weakness, it shows you care." Cameron told him, she wiped a tear from his eye.

John was surprised by the human answer. "Where did you learn that?" he asked her.

"From you, you've shed tears in the future. No one looks down on you for it; they feel relieved that even the great John Connor can be so human, that he can show a moment of weakness in front of many, that is true strength." She was looking right at him now.

"I don't know about the 'great' John Connor." He tried to correct.

"You are in the eyes of the Resistance, John. You are to me." She said with a small smile.

John placed a kiss on her lips. "Thank you." He whispered to her with a smile in return to hers.

She gave him a kiss in return. "You're welcome." She took his hand and headed towards the house.

----

John slowly opened the door of his mother's room. He frowned to see her lying in bed. He wished she was unloading and loading guns, a sign of her being back to normal. His mother always pushed herself; to see her voluntarily stay in bed wasn't good. His face disappeared between the space of the frame and the door. The lock clicked in place and turned around to see Stacy right next to him.

"Don't do that!" he screamed silently, not to wake his mother.

"I'm sorry, John." She apologized. "You left your cell phone on the table and it rang, it was the jewelry guy! The ring is ready!" she said with excitement.

John smiled, it was the second smile he had today, the first being from Cameron's comfort.

"It's ready?" _Good._ He thought, it was something to help get his mind off his mother and the perfect way to completely apologize to Cameron, even if she already had forgiven him. He needed to show her he was sorry.

"Well let's go." He said with a smile.

----

The bell over the door rang as John and Stacy entered the store, he was greeted by the owner.

"Hello, John right? You got here fast! You must be really excited to give this ring to your lucky lady!" he said with a chuckle in his voice.

John blushed a little at that statement.

"You know he is!" Stacy answered nudging him with her elbow.

The owner smiled. "I'll get it for you, wait a minute." He headed towards the back.

John turned around and looked at Stacy; he hopped up and down, shaking his arms. She smiled at him.

"You nervous already? You haven't even given her the ring yet!" she laughed.

"I know." He answered. "It's the thought of giving her the ring. What will she say? What is she going to do?" he asked her.

He was right, he was nervous when he and Cameron got closer, the first time they made love, but this was something totally different. He was giving her a ring, a hollow circle that meant commitment. What if she said no? What were the chances of her saying no? He didn't think too high, but nevertheless the thought wandered in the back of his mind.

"You can start by telling her you love her, that's an excellent place to start." She said with a laugh. "Don't worry, you're John Connor."

"John Connor saves the world, giving a ring to the woman he loves doesn't really fall under that list." He whispered.

"Here's the ring, sir. I hope it is to your liking." He placed the open box on the glass counter. John slowly picked up the dark purple velvet box and stared at the ring. His mouth opened slightly.

The gold shined in the light, and the diamond reflected into his eyes, like a prism, a rainbow emanated from it and filled the store. It was beautiful and he knew would look perfect on Cameron.

"This is perfect." He muttered to himself.

"Do you think she'll like it?" the owner asked John.

He looked at him with a smile on his face. "She'll love it."

----

John walked into the house with Stacy following behind him, the door shout followed by Stacy's voice.

"It's supposed to be a clear night tonight, maybe you can look at the stars with Cameron and… you know…" she said with a small laugh.

He smiled at her.

"You know what?" Sarah asked.

John's smile disappeared; he felt like a child getting caught sneaking back into the house past his curfew; thank goodness the ring was in his jacket pocket. He stared at his mother, clad in a robe and an empty glass in her hand.

"I was going to ask Cameron to star gaze tonight." He whispered.

His mother look at him skeptically, she still looked ill, but her eyes still were fierce and intimidating.

"Can I see it?" she asked him, he knew what she meant, but he played dumb.

"See what?"

"The ring." She answered with annoyance in her tone.

"Yeah." He mumbled quickly as his hands darted for the box in his jacket pocket. He took out it and nervously handed it to his mom. The acceptance from his mother kept him on his toes.

She opened the box slowly and stared at the gold band and the diamond on the top, the same diamond John gave her all that time ago.

Most importantly, it didn't look like the ring from her dream.

Perhaps a little irrational on her part, considering dreams have caused criticism from others around her, the three dots that haunted her even made her son question her. But, she knew what she saw in this dream wasn't Cameron's ring. She handed it back to John and gave him a small smile.

"When are you going to give her the ring?" she asked softly, still a little weak to be talking, or walking for that matter.

"I was hoping tonight." He answered her, relieved at his mother acceptance.

"Clear skies, John." Stacy added.

Sarah nodded and gave John a kiss on the forehead and ruffled his hair before heading towards the kitchen. John watched as his mother walked away, normally some defiance for such affection towards Cameron would be known, but he knew why that was simply a thing of the past.

How much longer was his mother going to be around?

Cameron said in her timeline she died before the war, could this be true in his timeline? Was his mother's fate sealed since the day she was born?

If this was so, she knew that John needed Cameron and she had accepted it, mainly to protect her own son, but she was willing to give John protection in another way. Letting someone she knew was more than capable. She would let Cameron, the most devoted protector of her son, next to her of course.

Another shirt found itself folded as Cameron continued the menial task of laundry. She picked up another shirt, it was John's. Sarah usually frowned upon Cameron or anybody else doing her son's laundry. Mother's way of saying her son was lazy, but Cameron didn't mind doing John's laundry. Cameron heard footsteps make their way to the open door.

"Hello, John. I am almost done folding your laundry." She said lifting up another shirt of his.

"Mom told you not to do that." He responded walking up to here.

"Yeah, but you left a pile of clothes in the corner and I felt the need to take care of them." She said; another perfect folding job for Cameron.

John looked down at the bed and observed the clothes on their bed. They were only his.

"You didn't your laundry?" he asked her.

"No, just yours." She answered.

He smiled at her.

"John?" she shook him from his reverie.

"Yes?" he shook his head.

"Did you need something?" she asked him.

This was it. John swallowed his saliva and took a deep breath to himself, asking for the date wasn't the nerve wrecking part, he'd done it before.

"I was wondering…" he paused for a second. He coughed and cleared his throat. "I was wondering if you like to do something with me tonight?" he asked.

She smiled at him. "Of course, John." She blushed at John's nervousness. It was cute to her. She waited for his next words. Cameron leaned towards him. "What did you have in mind?" she asked him slowly. She took another step further.

John swallowed again. "The skies are supposed to be clear tonight, so I was thinking we could find someplace nice and look at the stars. What do you say?" he asked her, leaning in for her next words.

She stared at him. A smile slowly appeared on her face, just like the one she gave him the first time she muttered "Thank you for explaining". "That sounds great, John. But what's the occasion?" she asked John.

John froze. He wasn't expecting that from her, he figured that she would say yes with no questions asked. "Uh… I wanted to make it up to you for what happened back at the bunker with the terminator."

"John, I already told you I forgave you for that. Don't worry about it anymore." She told John, for who knows for what time.

"I know you did, but I don't feel like that's enough, Cameron. I need to show you that I deserve forgiveness. I want to you show you how much I care about you. How about that? Will you go with me tonight?" he explained. His face showed his anticipation.

She looked down and then her eyes met with John's. Cameron lips formed into a big smile, her teeth complimenting the color of her lips.

"Of course I will, John. I can't wait." She said with an even bigger smile. Her lips met with John's cheek.

----

John held Cameron's hand as they walked through the park. John's eyes wondered towards Cameron. She always had quite the sense of fashion, Cameron always observed the people around her, but the amount she gained from her observations was astounding, but he figured it was normal for a terminator.

His eyes went up and down; he could never keep his eyes off of her and this time proved that theory right once again. Her hair was slightly curled and fell perfectly onto her bare shoulders; she had a simple black spaghetti strap tank top on. Her delicate shape was clearly defined with her pair of denim jeans.

He wondered how girls made their way into tight jeans.

She had make up on, but nothing too over the top, not like that eye shadow that she wore on her first day of school. The one she thought was a "tight" color. John thought it wasn't her, it was too obstructive. The color on her now was her, it was perfect.

"John, I like your shirt." She told him. John winced at the sound of his name; she knew he was staring at her. He knew it didn't bother her, but it was embarrassing nevertheless.

John wore something out of the ordinary for him; he couldn't remember being anywhere closed to "dressed up" since he wore that tuxedo several months ago. His white button down shirt fell over his nicest pair of jeans. When did John Connor ever wear white? He wanted to look good for Cameron, for his Cameron.

"You look great, Cameron." He said with a smile on his face. He swung her hand with his.

"Thank you, John." She smiled back at him. "I like your shirt, when did you get it? I don't remember you having that shirt."

"I got it specifically for tonight." He said with a proud smirk on his face.

Cameron bumped up against him and rubbed him softly. "I like it." She whispered to him.

He separated from Cameron, must to her dismay and opened the black bag he brought with him. He opened it up and looked inside.

"Blanket." He whispered.

He moved his always present pistol and took the blanket into his hands; he looked up at Cameron who gave him a smile waiting for his next move. John showed it to Cameron before placing it carefully on the damp grass. Cameron made her way to the blanket and slowly took a seat on the fabric.

John followed suite and sat next to Cameron, rubbing up against her. She smiled at him and watched as he lied down on his back, he patted the spot next to him, telling her to do the same. She nodded and fell down next to John, her hair touching the blanket and John before she did. He closed his eyes and smelled the hair, the scent made him feel at peace. It helped suppressed the anxious feeling in him, which he needed all the suppression he could get.

"It's August 27th 2009, John." Cameron whispered.

"I know that, Cameron. Why are you telling me that?" he asked quizzically confused by her first statement since lying down.

"I can tell the date by looking at the stars." She smiled.

"You can do that?" His voice went higher at the end of that question, almost too much.

She nodded. "Yes." Her head redirected back towards the sky. "In the future, we use the stars as a source of guiding us. Well, the humans do. I always know where I am. The Resistance used stars in the beginning of the war before someone actually mapped out the surroundings. The maps mainly contained landmark locations as guide points." She smiled.

John closed his eyes, the images of downed skyscrapers and rubble filled his mind. How could one navigate through a post-apocalyptic world? Would you know exactly where you were before and after the end of the world? These thoughts filled his head. What a different world they would live in soon.

"Using the stars, just like explorers." John added.

"Yes, just like explorers." Cameron looked back up at the sky.

The sky was clear, not one cloud blocked the tiny stars far away in the sky. The two just stared at the stars.

"Well, what I see when I look at the stars are constellations." John pointed towards the sky. "Look at Orion." His face touched Cameron's.

"Over there is Aquaris, and right there is Perseus." She added to John's constellations.

"Perseus?" John asked.

"Perseus is a figure in Greek mythology. He is the one who killed Medusa and claimed Andromeda, who was chained to a rock to be sacrificed to a sea monster." She explained.

"Sounds like quite the guy." John laughed. "Where did you learn all of that?" he asked her.

"History channel. I've been watching some television over the past couple of weeks." Cameron answered.

He smiled at her. "You've been watching television?" A small laugh came from him afterwards.

"Well, I didn't have anyone to be with after our fight, so I watched television." She muttered the last part, not wanting to bring up a sour subject.

John looked down. "Cameron." His eyes met with hers. "I know you said you have forgiven me, I still feel pretty bad about it." He figured now would be a good time, he swallowed real hard and sat up, Cameron followed him and sat up as well.

"I care for you, Cameron. I need you. You've saved my life many times and I'm devoted to you, just as you are to me." He said. He went into his pocket and pulled the small purple box. Cameron's head looked down towards the box and her eyes grew wide.

"John."

"Cameron, I love you." He opened the box and revealed the ring.

Cameron realized where the diamond came from. "Is that mine diamond?"

"Yes, it is the one I gave you. I didn't know you kept it, but when I found it, I thought this would be perfect." John said with a nervous smile.

"It is perfect." She said her face was lit up.

"Stacy said were married in the future, so here I am, telling you I want to stay devoted to you and I need to know if you will stay devoted to me? Will you marry me?" John asked leaning towards her, anxious for her answer. He didn't have to wait too long.

"Yes! Of course!" Cameron said with piercing cheer. Her smile lit up the darkness they were in.

John slid the ring onto her ring finger. He placed a kiss on her lips.

"I love you, John." Cameron whispered with excitement.

"And I love you, Cameron." John answered giving her another kiss.

Her eyes fell upon the ring.

"It fits perfectly. You know my ring size?" she asked him.

"Uh… Stacy knew it. She said you show her the ring a lot in the future, it gives her hope she said." John admitted.

Cameron took her eyes off the ring and looked straight at John.

"Did she?" she asked.

"Yeah, she did." He said, his smile disappearing, realizing the whole story of the ring and Stacy.

Cameron looked at him with concern. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He forced a smile, trying to push Stacy's memories in the back of his head. This was supposed to be a happy occasion. Not that he didn't care, it wasn't the time. The same went for this mother, his memory kept her their always, but it wasn't the time right now. He had Cameron with him and this was supposed to take his mind away from the strife of being John Connor.

"C'mon!" He stood up; Cameron's eyes followed his movement. "Let's celebrate. I'm hungry. Want to go eat?"

She smiled and nodded. "Let's go."

----

The light from nothing to abundance as Cameron and John entered a diner, the restaurant was packed and the voices of couples and families traveled through their ears. The hostess came up to the two with a smile on her face.

"Good evening! Welcome! Table for two?" she asked them.

The two nodded with a smile and followed the hostess to their table. They sat down as their menus were placed in front of them.

"Thank you." John told her. "What are you going to get, Cameron?" he asked her.

Cameron's eyes scanned the menu. "Well, I don't require anything; I would like to share something with you. Is that alright?"

He smiled at her answer. "Sure, I'm not too hungry. We can share an appetizer. How would you like that?"

She looked up from the menu. "Actually, how about we share a dessert instead?" She showed her menu to John and pointed at the dessert that caught her eye.

"That's a huge ice cream sundae, Cameron." He commented staring at the picture.

"That's what I want." She told him.

He smiled. "That's what you want? Okay, sounds good." He told her. A smile appeared on her face.

"That sundae looks pretty good." A voice came from behind them.

Cameron looked up as John's head redirected towards the voice behind him. The man wore a hat with long hair draping down to his shoulders. He put another spoonful of pudding into his mouth, he wiped his mouth with his napkin, John and Cameron's eyes were still on him.

"Who the hell are you?" John asked quietly, not to gain any attention.

The man cleared his throat and looked straight at John.

"My name is George McCarthy."


	26. And Scurries Out the Other Side

_Hello everyone. Here is the next chapter, sorry to keep you waiting, I hope all is well with everyone._

_Hope to read some nice reviews and questions if anyone has got them!  
_

_Anyway on to the next chapter, I hope you all enjoy._

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Chapter 26: And Scurries Out the Other Side

"Don't remember who I am, John?" George asked wiping his mouth with his hand again after another bite of his dessert. He slowly tapped the spoon against the steel cup that held his pudding.

John watched the utensil make contact with the metal container, the sound of the two clashing entered his ears as he kept his eyes on the man they searched for in that small town not too long ago.

"I know who you are." John told him. "You're Zoe's father, you killed her boyfriend and his family."

"I guess this is the part where you call me a murderer?" he asked John sarcastically, he folded his arms, the spoon still in his hand.

"I would, but you already seem to know that." John spat. Not only was this guy on the "bad guy" side, but he was ruining his evening with Cameron.

"Necessary deaths I'm afraid, Mr. Connor." George replied to John. John gritted his teeth.

"No death is ever necessary." A wall of breath exited John's mouth, audible to George. "Why did you kill them?"

"Because they were a threat." He answered him. John had a hard time believing that. He had a hard time hearing words muttered often by Cameron come out of the mouth of a murderer.

"A threat to who?" he asked with a demanding tone.

"They were a threat to the cause, John." His vague answered tickled John's ears.

"The cause? What the hell is that?" John raised his voice and stood up looking down at George. He looked around and saw the eyes of the restaurant on him. He slowly sat back down keeping his eyes on George.

"You might want to keep your voice down; you wouldn't want people to attract their attention to you." He said with a vicious smile.

John gritted his teeth until he felt Cameron's hand on his; she stood up and sat down next to John. Her eyes burned through George. John smiled inside, it was the first time he felt some tension of the situation dissipate. Cameron could do anything, he was sure of that.

But his mind quickly wondered back to the man sitting in front of him. Why he was here and what he wanted? He couldn't be here to kill him, he could've done that already, but in a public place wouldn't be the most ideal. Besides, Cameron was with him. He had to probe further.

"For a cyborg you can really read human emotions, you realized I wasn't dead by the way my family kept their eyes away from my picture." George stated.

Cameron looked up. "How do you know what I am?"

"I have my information, Cameron. Now John, I bet you thought I was here to kill you." He stated.

"The thought did cross my mind." John answered with his arms crossed.

"Well I'm not. I'm sure you realized that, too crowded with people and your cyborg companion would kill me before any lethal intention could've taken place." He explained to the two. Cameron smiled at the mention of her. "I'm simply here to relay a message."

John stared at him, no words; his reply was in his face.

"I know your mother is sick, John. We know your mother is." He corrected.

John's mouth opened slightly in shock of his words. How did he know?

"Where did you obtain that information?" he tried to play it off, John tried to make it seem like his sources were wrong. His mother was fine, but John's face, his tell gave it away.

"When you were captured by us near Acton, we scanned her and found several symptoms of cancer. She is sick and she has been for a long time, John." He gave his explanation.

John was stumped, it made sense and how could he possibly make something like this up? It would be such a shot in the dark, they knew and John didn't know what to do.

"What do you want?" John spat.

"We know that your mother can't see a doctor, she's a fugitive, and a treatment from a doctor is out of the question." George stopped; he twirled the spoon in his hands. "We can give your mother treatment, John."

John's eyes opened in frustration, he didn't know what to say to that, but he knew it was a trap. This is the enemy he is dealing with.

"What's the catch?" John asked, taking the bait, he wanted to see where this would lead to.

George turned his head to Cameron. "Will you join us?" John's eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

Cameron's head jerked towards George. A familiar question for both Cameron and John, but this answer was written in stone for both of them, not just Cameron and for John to find out.

"What? Why would you even ask that?" John said as loud as he could without gaining any more attention. He found it utterly ridiculous to ask Cameron such a question, her loyalty and devotion in no state of doubt, she would never betray John. The mind games were starting to annoy him.

"Because she is can be a key to victory for either side of the war." He whispered. He leaned in closer. "Cameron is one of a kind, the only terminator of her model. She is in a class of her own and unfortunately, she is with you." He explained. "It is what we want in exchange for treatment for you mother, John."

"Why would she join you?" John replied gritting his teeth. The idea of Cameron joining Skynet again was infuriating and ludicrous to add to it.

"Let her answer for herself." They both stared at Cameron, who looked up from her reverie.

"Why would I join you? I'm with John. I'm with the Resistance." She told him, John smiled at her statement.

"Smile all you want John." He spat at John.

"Why are you doing this? Any person would probably stop at the realization of what they're doing?" John asked George. The idea of exchanging Cameron and his mother was something his mind couldn't grasp. He couldn't choose between the one who gave him life and the one that brings him life. He wasn't ready for such games from his enemy.

"I do what I do because I know what I am doing. I know what it can lead to. I'm here to ensure a genesis, to stop threats." He answered John.

"Threats, threats to who?" John asked.

"Not who, to what, a threat to Skynet." He told him, a small smile on his face.

Cameron's head tilted at that statement. "How do you know of Skynet?"

"You think I was just a blind employee of some evil corporation?" Cameron's eyes opened at George. "To answer your question." He cleared his throat. "I'm from the future."

John eyebrows scrunched together. "What?"

"I'm from the future, John. Just like her." He added to his previous admittance.

"So you're, you're a grey?" John accused, his eyes pointing fingers towards George.

"If you have to place a label on me, yes, I am a grey. But it isn't just me, every employee of Desert Heat and Air, in Kaliba is a grey."

John leaned back in his seat. A whole community of humans who betrayed their own species to ensure their individual survival, he couldn't wrap his head around it. He knew Brian was one, but how could so many simply switch sides? Sometimes he wondered if the machines had it right. Such fickle and selfish species they could be, complacent in their place on top of the world… until Judgment Day.

"So Skynet sent you back to ensure its genesis?" John asked.

"Doesn't it seem that way? You're smart; you're the leader of the human Resistance. You can figure that out on your own. It isn't just that, it's much more, General Connor." He played with his spoon again. "Sometimes it's the little things, like having a utensil to eat food. Not eating garbage for dinner is another reason."

"Spoons? You came here for spoons?" John joked.

"Paradise, John! You have no idea what it's like to live in a world where being underground is a sanctuary, and a die when someone you know doesn't die is a good day? I couldn't take it anymore, John. A lot of us couldn't. A lot of your Resistance soldiers would be the one to drive us away, discriminate against us because we weren't fighters; we just were vultures, leeching off their defenses and survival tactics." He explained.

John looked away. He couldn't imagine his men, his soldiers being cruel to civilians. He made a note of that, he wouldn't let that happen when the time came.

"You know that it won't last forever? You're creating something that will ignite the world in flames and the place you came to loathe will return? You do know this, don't you?" John asked him.

"Of course, but one minute in heaven, is better than none John." George stood up and dropped the spoon into the metal cup. It spun around several times, making the metal on metal sound travel through John's ears. "Time for me to go." He headed for the door.

"Enjoy your stay in heaven." John said to George, his eyes not leaving George's. His lips curled.

"And you enjoy yours." He answered walking out the door.

John slouched in his seat, glad the confrontation was over. Cameron scooted her chair over and placed a hand on his lap.

"You okay?" Cameron's voice filled with concern.

"I will be." John's thoughts ran wild. He had another level of chaos enter his mind.

-----

John sat on his bed, the covers disheveled. He rubbed his eyes. He thought the nap would help, but to no avail, his mind was still in chaos. It seemed Cameron sensed his awakening as she entered the room after he woke up. She opened the door just enough to let herself in and closed it behind her.

"How are you, John?" she asked as she took a sit next to him, the bed sank next to John as her frame dropped her total weight on the mattress.

"I really don't know anymore, Cameron." He looked at her. "He asked me to choose between my mother and you. The two people I love the most in this world." He shook his head. "How do you do that?"

"You can choose not to choose, I'm sure you thought of that." She told him.

"Of course I did, that was my first answer, but to have my mother die…" he was cut off by Cameron.

"Your mother would rather die than to be healed by the enemies of her son, of mankind." Cameron informed him, he knew it to be true.

She was right; his mother would rather die this way than to be healed by the creator of the war against the machines. She wouldn't have it. John smiled to himself; his mother would slap him if he even considered that option. It wasn't the choice that was killing him inside; it was the nerve that George tapped. He knew his answer once he uttered that choice, and it would be his mother's choice as well. But, he never considered such a tactic to come from them.

They sat in silence, John with his hands on his chin and Cameron sitting up straight with her hands on her lap. She stared intently at John, waiting for any word to come out of his mouth. He could feel her staring at him, he didn't mind. In fact, it was quite comforting to know she was devoted to him and it really did put him at ease. He moved his eyes to see her; she was still sitting close and still staring. She wouldn't move until he asked her, he knew this for a fact. John looked at her hands and saw the ring on her finger.

"I'm sorry, Cameron." He whispered.

"For what, John?" she asked. Concern painted the tone of her voice.

"For tonight, I wanted tonight to be special and not have anything to do with Skynet, the war, or my mother. But it all crumbled into that and I…" she cut him off.

"Shh…." She placed a finger on his lips and scooted closer towards him. "Don't be sorry, it isn't your fault." She removed her finger and placed her hands back on her lap. "What you did for me tonight was special and unforgettable John. I cherish this ring; it's thoughtful and full of love, something all girls love."

"All girls?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

"I read it in a magazine." She told him.

He smiled at her and laughed. The thought of a cyborg reading girl magazines could make even his mother at least chuckle.

"I love you, John. I'm here for you and I'll always find you." She told him a smile ending her sentence.

"I love you too. I'll always find you, Cameron." The last sentence rang familiar, his mother spoke those same words, but he didn't frown at that, he smiled in return towards Cameron. She leaned in and kissed him, wrapping her arms around him she pulled her lips away and smiled back at him. John slowly opened his eyes from the lip embrace.

"Lay down with me." She whispered in his ear, her voice was full of a lascivious tone.

John nodded slowly and lowered her head onto the pillow, his eyes looking down at her.

They already told each other, but they said it again.

"I love you, Cameron."

"I love you, too."

Their lips met again.

------

Cameron opened her eyes, she wasn't asleep. As she said to John, to everyone many times before "she didn't sleep". She just lied there, underneath the sheets. Cameron took her hand and rubbed it up the sheet. She opened her fingers and closed them, letting the fabric in between her fingers. Cameron closed her eyes as the smooth fabric enticed her skin. She smiled at the sensation. It was nothing new, but to feel so human made her "happy". She opened her eyes and focused on the ceiling.

Two hundred forty seven, two hundred fifty one imperfections on the ceiling. She continued to analyze the structural texture of the ceiling.

She felt the bed shift; she turned her head quickly to see John shift onto his side, the sheet moving underneath her hand, the fabric removing itself from her fingers. She turned on her side and leaned her head into her arm, resting on the pillow. Her eyes were fully focused on John as he let out a small sigh turning over onto his side, his face away from Cameron.

She moved closer, her body touched his under the covers of the bed. She could feel the heat he was giving off. She closed her eyes from the change in temperature. Cameron watched as John slept and wondered, if he was dreaming, and if he was, what was he dreaming about?

She hoped it was about her. If she could dream what would she dream of? She lied there and thought hard to herself, letting her CPU process possible ideas typical of dreaming. From what she researched and saw on TV and in magazines people dreamed about luxury, money, and other outlandish things, nothing that appeared to her. She looked at John still in a state of slumber. She knew what, well who she would dream of. A smile crept on her face.

She always wondered what it was like to dream, it was a question she never asked him. She'd have to remember to bring it up.

John moved again and another small noise escaped his mouth, he turned over again and faced Cameron, his eyes still closed.

Cameron placed a hand on his side, bare and uncovered, the sheets only covering from the waist below. Her finger tips traced up his side and moved to his arm. She watched his face as his eyes flinched underneath his eyelids and a smile appeared on his face. She smiled at him.

He shook his eyes and slowly opened his eyes; John looked up to see Cameron's face in front of him. The light from the window outlining her head, her hair was down and slightly disheveled. It covered part of her face and hid part of her bare shoulders. The humidity outside made her hair frizz and expand out.

"Good morning." She whispered with a smile on her face.

"Good morning to you." He responded rubbing his eyes. "What time is it?" he asked.

"It is nine seventeen in the morning, John." She answered, getting the answer obviously from her HUD.

"You stayed in bed and watched me?" he asked her again, throwing another question her way.

"I always do that, John. I protect you and watch over you. You looked quite peaceful. Did you dream?" she looked right at him.

Stupid question on John's part, his brain probably wasn't fully functioning yet, he did just wake up. "Did I dream? No, not this time, I just slept… like a baby."

"Like a baby? You're seventeen years old." She said perplexed.

"No, it's only an expression, Cameron." He told her with a smile.

Wait for it.

"Oh, thank you for explaining." _Clock work._ John thought, never bothered him though. He knew it was what made Cameron, Cameron.

John sat up and winced, he was sore and he knew what it was from. The thoughts from last night made him blush.

"I'm a little sore today, Cameron." He said with a shade of red completely visible on his face.

Cameron's eyes opened with concern. "I am sorry if I was… too aggressive last night." She placed a hand on hischeek, she could feel the heat rising from his face..

He shook his head. "No, don't be sorry. You were… you were amazing." He blushed again, talking about this was always a little unnerving, but talking to the person of his affection made it really embarrassing.

She smiled and a shade of red made its way to her cheeks. "Thank you, you weren't bad yourself." She winked at him and smiled.

"It was quite sudden of you last night." He commented leaning back on the wall.

"I wanted to thank you for the ring." She told him sitting up with him.

"You gave me thanks enough when you said 'yes'." He answered her.

"So… you didn't want that last night?" she asked him, a disappointed tone in her voice.

John's face lit up with panic. "No, I didn't say that… I uhh…" he was cut off.

"I'm kidding; I know what you mean, John." She leaned up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

He smiled with relief. "You know, you're acting more and more like a teenage girl everyday."

Cameron simply smiled at him and stood up finding her tank top. She put it on and walked towards the door.

"Where are you going?" he asked her, a little disappointed she suddenly stood up and headed for the door.

The door opened slightly, with her hand on the door knob her head turned back towards John.

"I'm going to make you breakfast. What would you like?" she waited for his answer.

"Whatever you want to make, I'll eat it." He answered.

"I'll prepare you something that provides you with all the necessary nutrients." She smiled and disappeared behind the door, John heard the door clicked. He lied back down and stared at the ceiling.

-----

The sizzle of the oils in the frying pan filled the kitchen with sound. Cameron turned over more strips of bacon as she analyzed how long they would take.

A few more minutes she deducted.

She had prepared quite the breakfast for John, well there was enough for everyone in the household, her main purpose was to feed John. On the table were scrambled eggs and toast accompanied by orange juice. She hesitated and thought meticulously about the bacon, but she caved. She knew John loved it and decided to prepare it; it would bring a smile to his face, a rarity these days.

She frowned at that thought. Today and last night were the most she seen a smile come from his face. Cameron couldn't complain about it, the recent events that had fallen upon him weren't exactly smile inducing.

Cameron turned her head towards the entrance of kitchen when the weak sound of bare feet entered her ears. She turned over more strips of bacon as she saw John enter the kitchen yawning. Another yawn exited his mouth as he sat down at the table.

"I wondered how long it would take you to get out of bed." She asked him.

"I smell food, I head towards it." He answered her stretching out his arms. He sniffed the air leaning his head back, eyes toward the ceiling. "Do I smell bacon?"

"Yes." Cameron told him. She turned around with the frying pan and spatula in hand looking at John, her face was blank. She gracefully slid several pieces onto the spatula and placed them on his plate.

"I thought you said something that would provide me with nutrients? Bacon is quite greasy." He joked with Cameron as he picked up the bowl of scrambled eggs.

"I know, but the eggs and toast provide a sufficient amount and I know you like bacon." She said with a back towards John. John looked at her as she stood there with the spatula and pan with a hip pointed to the left.

_What a girl pose._ He thought as he stared.

"John, you're staring." She faced John now. He lit up with a shade of red.

"Sorry. Sorry." He looked down at his food and took a bite of his scrambled eggs.

She smiled and turned around once again placing the pan in the sink. She took a seat at the table across from John and placed some food onto her plate.

"Is it good?" she asked as she poured herself some orange juice.

He swallowed his bite of bacon and looked up at her, fork in hand. "Excellent Cameron, everything tastes great." He said with a smile.

"It smells good too." John looked up to see his mother enter the kitchen with Savannah behind her.

Savannah smiled and ran towards the table, she quickly jumped up onto a seat and grabbed a fork.

"Did you cook, John?" she asked with a smile.

"No. No. No." he shook his head and pointed his fork towards Cameron. "Cameron did."

Sarah walked up to the table and looked at the food. She took a deep breath and inhaled the scent of the breakfast on the table in front of her.

"Smells real good." She took a seat and grabbed some toast and eggs.

The sound of forks colliding with plates was the only audible noise in the kitchen as the three enjoyed the most important meal of the day. Sarah swallowed her bite and looked at John.

"How was last night?" she asked.

John's fork made his plate squeal as he looked up from his food. He looked at Cameron he was sitting up straight, her fork sticking straight up in her right hand. She stared right back at John, neither saying a word. Sarah looked at Cameron's right hand and saw the ring, she smiled.

"Do you want to talk about it later?" she asked him as she nodded her head towards Savannah as she continued to eat her food.

John nodded. "Yeah. That's a good idea." He played with his food a little before taking another bite.

Sarah cringed at the thought. She had typical mother thoughts, her son's level of intimacy with Cameron; where it took place, but she had a feeling it had nothing to do with that. What happened last night with John and Cameron? She could only wonder… she knew it wasn't a typical night of advancement in a relationship. Sarah took another bite of her food.

_Cold already? _She sighed to herself.

-----

John and Cameron found themselves outside with Savannah and John Henry. The two watched from the porch as John Henry gently tossed a ball towards Savannah who returned John Henry's smile. John watched as the sentient A.I. happily played with an elementary school child.

He turned his head towards Cameron who was clad in shorts and a white tank top, simple, but he couldn't remove his eyes. She was sitting up straight with her hands in her lap, her typical sitting position with her eyes on the two with the ball. He closed his eyes and slouched back in the chair and took a deep breath. Despite being surrounded by Cameron and a playful child filling the air with laughter he couldn't stop his mind from moving. Hoping his problems would go away when he opened his eyes he was disappointed when they didn't, but he wasn't disappointed at who he saw.

Cameron was standing in front of him holding her hand out in front of him.

"Where do you want to go?" he asked her, the sun being blocked by her body, he finally got to relax his eyes from the constant squinting he was doing.

"Let's go play with them." She said with a smile.

"Are you serious?" John's voice went up at the end of the sentence. "You want to play ball with them?"

"Come on, you're sitting here thinking, let's get your mind off it." She lowered her head and was that a pouty lip?

He took her hand and reluctantly stood up from content position. She smiled in response and the two headed towards John Henry and Savannah. As they stepped on the grass the ball bounced towards them followed by a little red headed girl. She looked up at them with a smile.

"Are you two gonna play with us?" her smiled revealed some missing teeth; she lifted the ball up towards her chin. John Henry had a smile on as well and waved towards John and Cameron. "Will you join us?"

Cameron and John smiled despite John Henry's choice of words. "Of course." Savannah's smile grew wider and ran back towards John Henry followed by John and Cameron.

_Who would've thought tossing a rubber ball around would calm me down?_ John thought to himself.

It had been at least a half an hour of the simple game of catch, but it showed no signs of stopping. It was soothing, for John at least, he felt like a normal teenager, well… a normal kid.

"I have to tie my shoe!" Savannah announced, the three acknowledged her and paused waiting for Savannah.

She knelt down and grabbed at her laces. "The squirrel runs around the tree." She whispered to herself making a loop.

"He dives in the hole and scurries out the other side." She smiled to herself in pride, another perfect knot. She looked up to see the three of them just standing there. She focused in on John Henry and Cameron. She noticed similar they stood compared to John. She knew that John Henry was a robot underneath his skin and he was nice to her. Cameron was nice and stood just like John Henry, could she be a robot too? She tilted her head at her reverie.

The ball made its way towards Savannah bending down the grass in its way. She shook her head and picked up the ball.

"You day dreaming, Savannah?" John joked as she made her way back to the trio. She gave one more stare at Cameron and John Henry who answered with their own eyes with curiosity.

"Is something wrong, Savannah?" John Henry asked.

"Noooo…." She dragged out the vowels, typical aural habit of any child.

John Henry squinted with skepticism, but dismissed it and smiled at her. "Okay." He simply answered.

-----

Sarah heard laughter as she drank another glass of water in the kitchen. She slid open the glass door and observed the quartet playing outside. She squinted as the sun was out in full force. The sensitivity of her head and eyes was a common thing now, but she ignored and found herself leaning on the steel of the railing watching her son play ball with Cameron, Savannah, and John Henry. John's smile was contagious; Sarah couldn't help but smile as he stole the ball from Cameron and ran with it, Savannah and John Henry following behind him.

Cameron caught up to John easily and grabbed him taking him down to the ground. Savannah joined in the pile and John Henry had his trademark smile on as he picked up the ball from the ground. He turned and Sarah, he smiled at her and waved. She hesitantly returned his welcoming gestures. She stared off away from the cheerful four and lost herself in a distant patch of grass.

Her thoughts wandered.

Was this as close they were going to get to being normal?

* * *

_Hope you all enjoyed it. Stay tuned for the next chapter. Review if you like! Thanks!_

_:)  
_


	27. There's a Storm Coming

_Hello everyone. First I would like to say Happy Halloween! Hope everyone is having a nice day._

_Secondly, I'm sorry this took more than two weeks...(I think.) I had a tough time creatively after the last chapter. Hopefully this is good... I hope...._

_I had a busy couple of weeks too... so it was tough to fit everything in I wanted to do in a day._

_Anyway, I hope you enjoy this. I hope you have a good holiday..._

_Review and ask questions if you want! :)  
_

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Chapter 27: There's a Storm Coming

The bright red rubber ball finally found rest in the grass as the ball catching quartet found relaxation on the porch. Cameron and John sat at the table with glasses of iced tea in their hands. John took another sip and placed the moist glass back on the table and shook his right hand shaking the condensation remnants of his fingers.

John Henry sat on the floor with Savannah, playing with Savannah's ducklings, Chicky, Plucky, and Feathers. John Henry smiled as she dropped one the ducklings on his head; it fell and landed on his hands. John turned his head from the table to see John Henry and Savannah playing and smiled as laughter left Savannah's mouth.

He never played games like that with his mother.

Today was the first time he could remember playing, like a child, with no worries. His childhood contained war games and chess. He knew that it was his fate, his destiny though and he knew he couldn't change.

Would he though?

Despite the weight that fell upon his lone shoulders, he knew that his life would be totally different without this destiny. Would he have the same relationship with his mother? He didn't know. Would he be as close with his mother? Perhaps, but definitely in a different way.

His eyes drifted towards Cameron who squinted in the sun light. He wondered if she really needed to do that or if she was just trying to fit in with Savannah and himself. She sat there with her arms resting on the arm rests of the chairs with her legs crossed. He smiled, she wasn't sitting in her usual "terminator seat pose". John's face just spilled with pensiveness. He knew one thing, if his life was normal he may have a different relationship with is mother, perhaps a normal one, but Cameron would never be here. Sure, Alison would be, but would he meet her? Also, she had to be totally different from Cameron. Cameron was his and to have her he had to deal with being the savior of mankind. He smiled to himself. He knew that was worth it.

John looked up ant his eyes met with hers, it surprised him a little bit, shaking himself out of his train of thought. A small smile from Cameron brought him back down from his pensive state. He smiled back at her blocking out Savannah's laughter.

He motioned for her to come towards him, she listened and stood up and walked towards him. The sun that was bearing down on John was blocked by Cameron and her shadow appeared on him, he looked up without squinting at her. He patted his lap with a smile.

"Want a seat closer to me?" he asked her.

"John, I weigh a lot. I don't think that would be wise." She whispered to make sure Savannah couldn't hear their little conversation.

He did forget about that. "Sit on both my legs that you spread your weight out." He told her.

She nodded and slowly lowered herself onto John's legs. She hesitated at first and reluctant to put all her weight down, but John insisted. She nodded again and sat down completely on his lap.

John shifted underneath her trying to even her weight out, he tried the best he could, but she was still heavy. Not as heavy as he thought she would be, it definitely wasn't the most comfortable, but he tolerated it, especially since Cameron was in such close proximity to him, that closed out the uncomfortable feeling almost completely. She turned her head and looked down at John, her hair conformed to her movements and it fell passed her shoulders covering her face. John could make out her smile though. He smiled back at her and gently moved the hair out of her face placing it behind her ears.

"Am I too heavy? I don't want to hurt you." She whispered looking down at John.

His eyes stayed on hers as he looked up at her, covered in her shadow. "No, you're perfect." He smiled.

Their stare was interrupted.

"I hope you're not hurting my son." John and Cameron's heads both looked up at the source of the sound.

Sarah stood there with a glass of iced tea of her own. The robe was gone; she now sported one of her trademark tank tops and jeans.

John Henry and Savannah looked up at Sarah as she entered. Savannah's face turned quizzical, how could Cameron hurt John by sitting on his lap?

Sarah took Cameron's seat. "Since this sit is now free, I'll be taking it."

John got nervous, public displays of affection in front of his mother never seemed like a good idea. They especially weren't a good idea with a terminator. She may have accepted it, but he was damn sure his mother didn't want to see it.

"How are you feeling, mom?" he asked desperately trying to change the subject his mother brought up.

She took a sip from her glass and placed it on the table. She laid back into the chair and rested her arms on the arm rests. "The same." She simply answered closing her eyes.

It probably wasn't the best subject to switch to.

"Cameron…" Savannah started dragging out the end of her name.

John and Cameron turned their heads toward the small red headed girl standing right next to them.

"Yes, Savannah?" she answered.

Savannah twisted her right foot into the floor of the porch and looked down towards the ground before responding.

"Are you like John Henry?" she asked Cameron.

She looked at John who swallowed, not too sure how to answer this one. Cameron's attention returned towards Savannah. John looked at his mother who sat up at Savannah's inquiry.

Cameron got off John's lap and bent down to look straight at Savannah. John sat up and stared at the duo in front of him.

"You want to know if I'm like John Henry?" she asked Savannah.

Savannah nodded. "Yes, John Henry is a robot, but he isn't a scary robot, he is my friend. You both stand up the same way and kinda act the same way…" she didn't really know how to word what she was trying to say, but Cameron understood.

John looked over at his mother.

She smiled. "Observant kid." She whispered to John.

_She'll be an asset in the future._ Sarah thought to herself.

Cameron looked towards John and Sarah. John nodded, there wasn't anyway to hide this, she knew and it wasn't going affect anything. She was just part of this future now; she had the right to now.

Cameron turned her head back towards Savannah. Savannah looked into Cameron's eyes and a smile appeared on Cameron's face, she towards John again and then turned her head back to Savannah, her hair following her every move. She nodded slowly at Savannah; she lit up and jumped up and down.

"You are like John Henry!" she squealed and smiled.

Cameron smiled at her and then looked back at John again who smiled back at her, he got up and walked over to the two, taking a knee next to Cameron.

"What are you two ladies talking about?" he asked playing dumb.

"Cameron is like John Henry!" Savannah repeated.

John's eyes connected with Cameron, a small subtle smile appeared on his lips, one that she responded to with one of her own.

"Is that so?" he asked her.

"Mmmhmm!" she answered nodding her head. Her smile slowly disappeared.

"What's wrong Savannah?" Cameron asked.

"Cameron protected me when that man came to hurt me; you did too, just like John Henry tried to do. It was scary." She trailed off.

John stared at the texture of the deck. He remembered that day, getting in the line of fire a terminator isn't what made that day an unfortunate memory. It was the death of another close to him, a man who said that we die for you John, all of us. He was a man who kept his morbid promise. His uncle Derek Reese.

They dropped like flies around him, Todd and Janet, Charlie, Derek. His father died protecting him before he was born and Martin Bedell would perish in the future, saving John from becoming a prisoner of the enemy. How more in the future scream "for John Connor" before meeting their demise? It was a thought that was nauseating every time it entered his head.

"John."

"John."

"John!"

He shook his head and looked up at his mother who passed him his glass of iced tea, the glass was covered in water now which gave him a chill up his arm as he grabbed it.

"I think you've been in the sun long enough. You were staring at the deck for a while, you didn't even blink. You're getting as good as her." She pointed her head towards Cameron, who didn't blink.

"Yeah. I've been practicing real hard." He answered bringing the glass to his mouth, the droplets of water falling into his lap.

A mother knows best, and she knew John wasn't going to speak his mind. "I'm heading inside, too much sun. I think you should do the same, it's a scorcher out here." She stood up and headed towards the door.

Cameron brought herself closer to John and leaned her head on his shoulder, her hair covered his right side. He looked over at her and smiled.

"You were thinking again." She said to him.

"You're so observant." A sarcastic tone exited his mouth.

She quickly removed her head from the space between his shoulder and neck; a space so soundly fit for her and looked at him with slight disgust.

"You don't have to act that way." She snapped back at him.

He stared at her with his mouth open. She waited for a response.

"Sorry Cameron. I didn't mean to do that, I just got lost in my thoughts and…. I'm sorry."

Her face softened at his apology. "It's alright, John." She stood up and reached for his hand. "Come on, let's head inside. I think your mother is right, the sun is really getting to you." She said with a smile and small laugh.

He laughed back at her and grabbed Cameron's hand standing up. They stayed linked by their hands and headed for the sliding glass door.

-----

Stacy held the remote control and continued to press the up channel button; her eyes absorbed all the images that flashed across the screen of the television. Completely involved with the television she failed to realize that Sarah had taken a seat next to her on the couch.

"So are you going to pick something and stick with it?" Sarah joked as she leaned her head onto her hand.

"Sorry, I never watched TV before. I was born after Judgment Day. The only TV I ever saw had a fire inside to keep us warm during the winter months of the war." She rubbed the buttons of the remote in a circular fashion. "It gets cold in those tunnels."

Sarah sat up at the mention of the future that would soon be. "You're not missing too much, they only have these reality television shows." She joked, but Stacy just stared at her blankly.

"Reality television shows? What are those?" she asked.

"They are shows that depict how we live are lives." She laughed. "Trying to gain the affection of a certain bachelor, surviving on an island that people have been living on for years, or watching washed up celebrities interact with each other."

"Is that really how we live, well in present time?" Stacy asked with skepticism.

"No… no one does. It's the farthest from reality. It's all crap if you ask me." Sarah told her.

"Oh, the only reality I'm familiar with is tunnels, Skynet, and machines." Was all Stacy could say in response to Sarah.

Sarah took the remote from Stacy and turned off the television. The sound of the screen powering off followed the screen turning black.

"Don't worry. You're not missing too much." She said with a smile.

Stacy smiled back and stood up with Sarah and headed out of the living room.

-----

Feet clashed against the hard tile floor as he tried to catch up to the slow moving figure ahead of him.

"Mr. McCarthy!" He said between breaths. "Excuse me!"

George turned around and his eyes met with a man leaning on his knees, out of breath chasing George down the hall.

"What do you need? I don't have a lot of time." He told him, a tinge of anxiousness in his voice.

"Well… I was wondering something. I worked on the Skynet program and I never figured something out." The man asked.

George was showing visible annoyance. "And what would that be?"

"Why did we develop two A.I.'s? I mean we have what is destined to become Skynet and we have Cain, but why?"

George smirked and placed his arm around the man.

"Liam. Let me ask you something? I have you ever played chess?"

"Yes, I play a lot actually." He answered.

"Good. Then you'll understand this. Why do you have pawns in chess, Liam?" he asked his face getting closer towards Liam.

His nerves were shaking, the anxiety was rising. "You use them to sacrifice, to set up bigger moves."

"Exactly." George took his arm off of Liam and smiled. "I'll see you around."

Liam stood there with his mouth open.

-----

John took another sip from his glass as he sat in silence at the kitchen table. He placed the glass down and kept his eyes on it. His thoughts had been keeping him tense and awake for the past… well for a while now. The only night he got any kind of sleep was the night he proposed to Cameron.

Sarah watched her son from a distance, leaning on the frame of the entrance way. She frowned; she could sense his melancholy attitude. Something had been bothering him even after a successful proposal with Cameron, even though he didn't tell her directly she saw the ring. But something else had happened and she intended to figure it out.

"What are you doing?" she asked her son taking a seat next to him, her eyes focused only on him.

John looked up at her, a little bit of a quizzical look appeared on his face. Her tone was pleasant, what was she trying? "Nothing. I'm just sitting here. Why?" he turned the questions towards her now.

"Good. Come on, were going out." She told him tapping his shoulder, she took a stand, the chair scratching across the floor.

He shook his head. "Out, what do you mean by out?"

"I mean out. You don't want to disappoint your mother do you?" she said with a stern look, the trademark look of a hard as nails mother, well maybe just Sarah Connor.

John looked down for a moment. He hated to think this, but with his mother sick how many more times would he get this opportunity? He would be able to something "normal" with his mother. He couldn't think of a time where they headed to a restaurant together or watched a movie, in fact, he was positive there wasn't any moment like that. The only other times they spent quality time together was driving in a car heading towards their next town to hide out in from the authorities, and the machines. John frowned at himself. Once born, he traded in movies and board games for guns and training in the jungle.

John stood up and smiled at his mother. "Alright, where do you want to go?"

She returned John's smile and answered back. "I'm not sure, but we'll figure something out. Come on, let's go."

-----

The two ended up strolling in the park, John had been in his fair share of parks these past few weeks, but this one wasn't the same one that he and Cameron had ventured through. This wasn't the same one that he proposed to Cameron in. He never walked through this one, but something seemed oddly familiar about it.

John and Sarah walked away from the ice cream vendor with treats in their hands. The two found the nearest bench and took a seat with the perfect view of the playground. John watched as a mother and her child headed towards the spring riders. John took a bite of his ice cream and looked towards his mother.

"What's up?" he asked her. "Why did you come here?" another question thrown her way.

"I remember this park from my childhood. I wanted to take you here, but we were in South America when you were born." She admitted to him.

John's mouth opened and the ice cream in his hand grew farther away from the opening. "You wanted to take me here?"

"Of course, I didn't want your life to be full of everything involving your destiny. I wanted you to try to live a normal life at one point." She started to shake her head. "But… I think I lost sight of that somewhere. I grew so angry and so narrow minded. I took your father's death so hard. I just wanted to get revenge; the best way for me to do that was to train you the best I possibly could. That's all my mind could focus on, the machines, your father, training you to be the leader you are destined to become."

John sat silently staring at his mother. He didn't know what to do or what to say.

"Soon… I grew obsessed, that's how I ended up in that hospital. I grew careless, trying to blow up that computer factory got me on their radar again and I lost you. I was trapped between four walls." She wiped a tear from her eye. "Just like I almost lost you in Acton. I was careless there too."

"Mom… I…" John's words faded. He didn't know what to say.

Sarah's moist eyes met with her son's. He couldn't contain it, her tears were contagious. He embraced her and let out a sob. She hugged him back and rubbed her hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry, John."

He looked at his mother. "Don't be sorry mom. You have no reason to be apologetic."

She looked at him; both of their eyes were red.

"You did what you had to do and you did a good job." He smiled weakly.

She wiped her eyes again, the damn tears wouldn't stop. Sarah grew conscious of the people who noticed their little conversation, normally it would bother her, but right now she couldn't be bothered with unwanted spectators.

They sat in silence, the hidden tension between the two. The mother of destiny and a teenager destined to lead mankind were bound to butt heads, but with the confession between the two it seemed to evaporate… most of it anyway. Sarah still had to play her role of nagging mother.

_No one likes a nag._ _Sorry Cameron, not this time._

"So… how was the other night? And this time I expect an answer, it's been later." Sarah asked.

John was shocked at his mother ability to change subject and emotion, but being a hard as nails mother he guessed it came with the territory.

"I'm guessing that's part of the reason why you asked me here." He told her.

"Good guess." She answered. "What happened? I don't mean with Cameron, I know that went well. I saw the rock, something else happened."

Man, his mother hit the nail exactly on the head, were all mothers like this? Well probably, except with sneaking out and stealing cookies from the cookie jar… not about people acting as cohorts to a sentient A.I. that was destined to destroy the world.

He took a small breath. "Remember George McCarthy?" he asked her.

He could see the wheels turning, his mother's wheels turned quick. "Yes, the survivor of the Desert Heat and Air. The one guy we couldn't find."

"Yeah, well he found Cameron and I that night." John's expression changed from one of indifference to one with a hint of loathing. "They know you're sick, mom." His eyes met with Sarah's.

Sarah tried to keep her hard as nails look on, but it was hard. Something easy for Cameron, not so much a human. How did they know that? "How?" she asked.

"When we were captured, they detected you were ill. That's not all…"

Sarah waited for her son to finish his thought.

"They gave me an ultimatum." He looked back at his mother.

"And what would that be?" she asked with a heated tone, talking about Skynet and its collaborators was always enough to change the mood of Sarah.

"You or Cameron." He managed to spit out.

Sarah's lips separated. The two just sat there, but John spoke up first. He couldn't sit there like that anymore.

"They offered treatment for you if I handed over Cameron." He was nervous. He knew that his answer to that ultimatum would be the next to leave his lips. How would his mother react to it? Would she proud that her son chose what he thought was the right answer, or disappointed the he picked metal over her? The one who gave him life over a machine?

"And… you chose the right one I hope. You chose Cameron." she trailed off. Her voice spoke with a hope he chose her, but with an absolute knowing that the choice he made didn't surround her at all…

John's eyes squinted at his mother's response.

"Come on, John. I know you knew what my answer would be. That definitely went through your mind at the point." She told him. He nodded slowly.

"I would never accept anything from them. John, I know you thought I would be upset at your answer, but you made the right one." She did hurt inside. The fact that her son did pick the cyborg over her was upsetting at an extent, but she knew it wasn't a choice of one or the other. It was a matter of respect. John knew his mother better than anyone; he knew that she would slap the saliva out of his mouth if he chose for his mother to accept help from the machines.

"If you told them that you chose me… it would be stupid first off because they would have Cameron. Secondly I would slap the taste out of your mouth. You think I would accept that?" she told him.

He laughed a little, mostly trying to lighten the mood of the entire situation. "I figured that, but…"

"No buts John. You're going to have to make decisions like this a lot in the future. It is simply a responsibility of any leader. This was one of the first, but you made the right choice. How much longer am I going to last? I'm ill, my health is deteriorating, and there I won't be able to help you after Judgment Day, but Cameron will and you won't be alone after Judgment Day… you'll have her. I'm not going to be around forever, John." Sarah swallowed a little bit.

She broke up the silence again. "I'm proud of you, John. I'm proud that you're turning into the man that this world needs. You made a decision and you chose the correct path. You also knew that I wouldn't be too happy if you chose me, even if it does hurt. I'll be honest, it does hurt, but I know it is the right choice. Deep down, I know it is, John."

John shook his head, two tears leaving each eye. "Mom…" he couldn't get another word out.

Sarah grabbed him and pulled John into another embrace. His arms wrapped around her and he squeezed.

"Mom…" he whispered.

She pulled away and looked at her son, her son that she had raised to become the man he was suppose to be. She was the mother of destiny and she had done all she could.

"Yes, John?"

"I love you, mom."

She smiled, her eyes watering up. "I love you, too."

-----

Cameron sat on the couch with Savannah who was occupied with the images flashing on the television. Cameron found herself intrigued by what Savannah was watching. She sat up straight with her hands in her lap.

"Cameron, you should relax. Like me!" Savannah told Cameron with a smile, she leaned back to show Cameron.

Cameron smiled at the small red headed girl and leaned back and brought her legs up onto the upholstery. She wrapped her arms around them and leaned her head onto her knees.

"That's better!" Savannah exclaimed.

"What are you watching, Savannah?" Cameron asked her.

"Oh.. I'm watching…" she was cut off by Catherine Weaver.

"Savannah, may I speak with Cameron in private? John Henry is downstairs and he wants to talk to you before he leaves with me."

She obediently nodded and headed downstairs to see John Henry. Cameron turned her head towards Catherine and stood up.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"I didn't think a cyborg could be a pessimist. Nothing is wrong; John Henry and I are meeting with Mr. Ellison. He has nearly finished something that we will all find useful and we are going to put the finishing touches on it so to speak." She said with a smirk.

Cameron tilted her head.

"Don't worry. Just keep an eye on Savannah for me." The two turned around at the sound of the basement door opening. John Henry walked out of the opening with Savannah sitting in his arms.

"Be good for Cameron and Stacy, Savannah. I will be back soon." He told her.

She nodded. "I will! I'll miss you, John Henry!" she told him.

"I will miss you too, Savannah." John Henry answered back walking towards Catherine.

"We will see you too soon." Catherine told them as the two headed out the door.

Cameron sat back down on the couch and looked at her ring. She frowned slightly, John didn't tell her where he was going, but she knew he was with his mother. She knew she couldn't be upset, but she missed him.

"He hasn't been gone long you know. Plus, he'll be back soon."

Cameron looked up to see Stacy standing in front of her.

"I know…" she trailed off.

"In the future I come from… you stare at that ring a lot when he's gone. It always bring you comfort." Stacy told her.

Cameron looked back down at the ring. "Where I come from, there is no ring or diamond. I'm known as metal and that's it. John's relationship with me is seen as… disgusting. They think I was manipulating him."

Stacy frowned at that. "I can't even imagine that. A person can be smart, but in groups… we grow fearful and narrow minded. We shun the things we don't understand."

Cameron looked up at Stacy. "I'll agree with that."

The two looked up at the door bell rang. "I'll get it!" Savannah yelled as she headed for the door.

Cameron's robot face went on and she stood up, she scanned passed the door.

"Do you think it's John Henry? Did they forget something?" Savannah asked.

Cameron ran towards Savannah and grabbed her. "Savannah no!" she yelled. She grabbed her and leaned against the door frame. Debris from the door flew across the living room as bullets flew through. Stacy jumped over the couch for cover, several bullets hit the couch, but Sarah had placed Kevlar inside of it.

Cameron called to Stacy and the three of them headed upstairs as the sound of firearms entered the house again.

"What the hell is this?" Stacy yelled.

"I don't know." Cameron answered.

Savannah started to cry. "What's… what's going on?" she cried.

"Don't worry Savannah. I'm going to fix this, but I need you to listen to me. I need you to hide, okay? Don't leave your hiding spot." Cameron ordered her.

The red headed girl nodded.

"Stacy, I need you to stay with Savannah. You make sure nothing happens to her." Cameron told her.

"What about you?" Stacy asked.

They heard the door fall to the floor and footsteps enter the living room.

Cameron stood up and headed towards Sarah's closet. She grabbed the shotgun and cocked it. She turned her head towards the two.

"I'll handle this." Her eyes flashed a dark shade of blue.

* * *

_There you go. I hope you enjoyed it. I felt a that a "small" view of the enemy was necessary. I mean "small". 'Til next time._


	28. We're Off to See the Wizard

_Hello again. Once again, I'm sorry for the long wait. Life's been busy. Good, but busy. Anyway... I just learned I was accepted to Graduate School back where I attended for my undergrad. So I'm excited._

_Anyway, lots of action in this chapter. Action is always tough for me to write, so hopefully its okay. Nice stuff happens at the end._

_Please review and ask questions if you have any._

_Enjoy the chapter! :)  
_

* * *

Chapter 28: We're Off to See the Wizard

Cameron walked in front of the door and pointed the shotgun towards it. The bullets continued to fly through the door, some hitting Cameron. Of course she didn't feel them, but she felt something else.

_John isn't going to be happy. He hates it when I'm injured._ She thought. Cameron frowned at herself. John was going to insist on helping her with her injuries.

She fired the shotgun. The screams of the gunmen traveled through the battered door as blood leaked through the bullet holes. The bodies hit the door. The white door, now covered in blood fell to the ground from the weight of the gunmen and the abuse from flying bullets.

Cameron cocked the shotgun again as another stood behind the gunmen. He raised his head toward Cameron, no emotion on his face. She pointed the gun and fired at him. He stumbled back; she fired again and again until the gun was empty. The smoke from the muzzle exited and the gunmen fell to the ground. She knew he wasn't human.

She tilted her head and stared at the gunmen on the floor. He was a terminator, she knew that. Cameron had to dispose of him fast; he didn't want Savannah to get mixed up in this and more importantly John. She didn't know when he was getting home.

She approached him carefully taking out her knife; she bent down placing the blade on his skull, she felt the blade make contact with the endoskeleton. She slowly started to cut the flesh. The terminator's hand grabbed the knife and stabbed Cameron in the stomach, her eyes opened wide as the machine stood up and grabbed her by the throat. Her hair flew in her face as she went backwards, her head colliding with the frame of the entrance to the kitchen. Cameron's body tilted parallel to the floor once her head hit the frame; she fell to the floor on her stomach. The frame fell on top of her as other debris hit the floor.

The terminator stood back up and locked his eyes on Cameron. Hers were locked right on him as she used her arms to rise up, debris falling off of her. She scanned him.

**Cyborg confirmed:  
T-888  
Functional  
Acquiring weapon**

Cameron got up faster as the terminator grabbed her shotgun off the floor. She headed for the couch with hidden Kevlar. She jumped over it as the shotgun went off. The shells made contact with the couch; Cameron turned her head towards the left, her hair followed. She reached underneath the couch and pulled out another shotgun.

The Connor's always kept weapons in the best places. She would have to thank Sarah for that later. Cameron popped up from behind the couch and opened fire on the approaching terminator. He took a few steps back as the shells from the shotgun connected with his chest. She cocked the gun again and fired one last time and the terminator fell to the ground.

Cameron took the extra shells attached to the shotgun and loaded them in quickly, but meticulously. She eyed the downed terminator, smoke billowing off his chest from the shotgun shells. The contrast of the metal underneath the skin complimented the flesh and blood as Cameron stepped over the machine, muzzle to the head. His hand grabbed the shotgun as it went off, grazing his face.

He pushed the shotgun to the floor as he stood up grabbing Cameron by the shirt. His now exposed eye glowed a fierce red as he threw her against the wall. She left an indent of her body as she fell back to the floor. She shook her head, not out of reflex, but out of human reaction. She would have to examine this habit later; right now there is a terminator on her tail.

* * *

Sarah and John walked up towards house and stopped in their tracks, they hid ran towards the back of their truck and leaned against it for cover.

"What the hell? Bodies and an unmarked van?" Sarah questioned.

"I don't know." John whispered. John turned towards his mother as he heard a gun being cocked.

"I don't think that's going to be enough." He commented.

"Oh yeah? I think it should be. Look at the bodies; I'm sure Cameron did that with a gun."

They turned their heads towards the house as a crash emanated from inside. John saw from the window Cameron fighting a terminator, his eyes opened wide. She was losing.

"Cameron." He said to himself. He stood up.

"John!" Sarah grabbed him and brought him back to her level. "You're not going anywhere."

His face was full of determination. "If I'm supposed to be a soldier and leader, how am I going to do it from here?" He let himself loose of his mother's grip and grabbed her gun. "I'm helping her." He left his mother by the truck. She opened the back of the truck and grabbed a submachine gun.

"Damn it, John."

John leaned up against the front of the house and peaked passed the door frame to see Cameron and the terminator in a contest of strength. Cameron threw the terminator down to the ground and started to repeatedly punch it. John spotted it, the exposed endoskeleton, the chip port was exposed. He needed to remove the chip.

_I need to help Cameron. I can't lose her again._ He urgently thought to himself. His troubling thoughts were cut short as another sound of crashes passed through his ears. Cameron was now on the floor with the terminator returning her punches from before. He winched at the sight of her getting punched. The sound of flesh and metal making violent contact was too much for him. He thought back when Vick attacked Cameron, his mother held him back, but she wasn't going to this time.

_I'm not losing you again, Cameron._ He thought to himself unaware his mother had taken a spot next to him, her gun in her hands.

"Listen, John." She whispered.

He turned his head towards his mother, surprised to see her next to him. "I'm going to distract him and help Cameron. You need to stay put and find the right time to remove the chip."

He tried to contain his smile from his mother and nodded. "Okay." He whispered.

She smirked and entered the house; she opened fired on the terminator who had the strength advantage on Cameron. The bullets tore through his flesh and bounced off his endoskeleton; he tossed Cameron to the side and turned his attention towards the Sarah.

**Target Identified: Sarah Connor**

** Priority Target**

** Objective: Terminate**

His eyes flashed a sinister shade of red as he headed towards Sarah. Sarah gritted her teeth as she opened fire again. Her finger held the trigger down until the sound of clicking replaced the sound of gunpowder. The menacing machine his way towards Sarah who started taking cautious steps backwards.

"Hey! It's me! John Connor!"

The terminator turned his head straight towards the source of the voice and analyzed.

**Target Identified: John Connor**

** Mission Priority**

** Objective: TERMINATE**

He headed towards John as he took some steps back, but he stopped.

Cameron turned him around and twisted his head; the endoskeleton's head fell backwards towards John. Its eyes flashing a sporadic and frantic red at John. Cameron wrapped her arms around him to keep him immobile. John headed slowly towards it taking out his knife, popping open the CPU port he got his finger around the chip. He looked into its bright eyes one more time before pulling out the CPU.

The humming sound of the powering down terminator entered his ears as the eyes slowly lost their red luster. The struggling appendages stopped flailing; Cameron dropped the T-888 to the ground, a loud thud accompanying it. Cameron tilted her head as John examined the chip, filling his lungs with deep breaths.

"It didn't explode." John said handing it to Cameron.

She examined it turning it around in her hand carefully. "Perhaps someone wanted us to see it."

"Who?" he questioned.

They heard footsteps come down the stairs.

"Is everyone okay?" Stacy asked with a gun in her hand. "The noise stopped, so I figured it was safe."

"Yes, everyone is okay." Cameron answered.

"Except that poor bastard." Stacy added walking up to the deactivated T-888; she kicked it for good measure.

"And you." John said looking at Cameron's cuts with a frown. "Come with me. I'm going to fix you up." He grabbed her hand and headed upstairs with Cameron obediently following. Sarah's eyes watched them with intent before focusing back on the T-888.

"Where's Savannah?" Sarah asked.

"She's upstairs. I stayed with her."

Sarah smirked, glad to hear the Savannah was alright.

"She's safe." Stacy added.

Sarah cringed at that four letter word.

"Safe? You call this safe? We were attacked by gunmen and a T-888. I hardly call that safe." Sarah headed upstairs to check on Savannah. She turned around and focused on Stacy.

"No one is ever safe." She added before heading up the stairs.

-----------------

Cameron sat on the bed topless as John continued removing bullets from her chest. John frowned at her injuries.

"I knew you would hate to see me like this." She told him.

"Of course I would, I hate to see you get hurt. I don't want to see you this way. It upsets me." He explained.

"I'm sorry."

He looked up at her dropping another bullet into a bucket. "Sorry? For what?"

"For causing you to fix me, for getting hurt. For making you upset."

John's face turned into a look of concern. "Cameron… don't be ridiculous. That is nothing to be sorry about. You're not the reason I'm upset." He took a seat next to her, her eyes followed him.

"You were doing your job, you protect. You protect me, my mother, Stacy, Savannah… everyone. You did that. You have nothing to be sorry about, Cameron." John touched her face, caressing one of her scratches.

She smiled at him and touched his face in return. "Okay." She looked down at herself. "John, I'm not completely healed yet, could you finish please?"

John shook his head. "Of course. Sorry."

She smiled at him again. He pulled out another bullet and dropped into the bucket with the others.

After the sound of the bullet hitting the metal of the bucket, the sound of Cameron's voice followed.

"Well it seems like there is no damage to your endoskeleton, just your skin, but that heals fast. Faster than my wounds anyway." He said with positivity. He looked at Cameron who had a curious look written on her face.

"John, may I ask you a question?" she turned her head towards him.

His eyes landed on her for one second before focusing back on her wounds.

"What is it?" he asked, a little curious at Cameron's sudden inquisitiveness.

"When I was engaged with the T-888, I was thrown against the wall repeatedly. I found myself shaking my head afterwards. It was a reaction, I tried finding something on it in my database, but I haven't found anything on it. I was wondering why this human response is appropriate in that situation?" her eyes focused on him.

John laughed to himself on the inside. Her naivety was always "cute" to him and the positive emotions that came from it couldn't be stopped. He always had to smile or laugh.

"Well… you're right about it being a reaction. Sometimes we just shake our heads to get rid of the cobwebs and dizziness from a bump to the head or in your case, getting thrown against a wall by a T-888."

Cameron stared at him, seemingly confused by his answer.

"You induce potential head trauma after experiencing some? That doesn't sound logical." She pointed out.

He smiled at her again concentrating on one last bullet lodged in her skin.

"Yeah, it doesn't make any sense, but it is a human reaction. You responded involuntarily with a human action."

She smiled at his implication. "Thank you, John."

He looked up pulling the last bullet out of her. John smiled at her in return. "You're welcome, Cameron."

He dropped the last bullet in the bucket, a clanking sound accompanying his finished task.

-----------------

Stacy picked up the remote control to the television only to drop it back onto the ravaged couch; she sat down on it carefully. She looked up at Sarah who entered the living room with Savannah in her arms.

"You were right about nothing be on TV." She nodded her head towards the television, it was smashed. She picked up the remote again and placed the power button for effect.

She smiled at her sense of humor. "Yeah, well television rots the brain anyway." she looked around. "Man, what a mess. We're going to have a hell of a time cleaning it up."

Stacy looked up at her, her arms leaning on her knees and her legs spread. "Yeah, I know. What fun." She said sarcastically rolling her eyes.

John came down the stairs with the first aid kid and bucket of bullets in his hands. Sarah turned around and stared at him, a small smile appearing on her face. He stood there for a moment looking back at her.

"Stacy, take Savannah." She whispered dumping her onto Stacy's lap; she turned around to see John now

She caught up with John who placed the first aid kit on the table and headed outside with the bucket.

"John." She placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned around. "How is she?" she asked.

John's face softened, he was worried about the "motherly lecture" about putting himself in danger.

"She's going to be alright; I removed all the bullets and patched her up. There wasn't any damage to her endoskeleton. Which means we can burn this guy." He kicked the deactivated T-888.

"We'll take care of that soon. How are you though? You put yourself in danger." She asked.

It was a different confrontation than he expected, he assumed his mother was going to scold him for his reckless act, but he remembered that his mother was in a different situation now… and so was he.

"I'm fine. Just glad that it's over right now." He told her.

"I am too. I'm also proud of you, John."

His eyebrows scrunched at her comment. "You are?"

"You showed bravery and skills only destined for a leader to save Cameron and me, because of you, you gave Cameron a chance to finally get the final advantage over that terminator. We also have the chip intact, which I'm sure John Henry will read it. You did well." She gave him a sincere smile.

He smiled back at her. "Thanks, mom."

* * *

John entered his room to find Cameron putting on a white tank top. He stumbled backwards as she turned around.

"John… you can enter. It isn't like you haven't seen me naked." She said with a reassuring tone and small smile.

He slowly looked up. "I know, but I was trying to be respectful."

She walked up to him and gave him a kiss. "Thank you." She looked down at his hands. "You brought ice cream. What's the occasion?" she asked him.

John handed her the ice cream cone. "The occasion being you're safe and you defeated that terminator terrorizing everyone in this house."

"If I remember correctly, you were the one that distracted the terminator and YOU were the one to remove the chip, John." She took a lick of her ice cream. "I think I should be getting you an ice cream." She smiled.

He smiled back. "Whatever. You ripped his head off remember?"

"Because you distracted him."

He laughed. "There is no winning with you, is there?"

She shook her head. "No." She took another lick of her ice cream. Cameron licked the vanilla substance off of her lips and a smile slowly appeared on her face.

John contained a laugh as the cold treat touched his mouth. His eyebrows raised when Cameron showed a different reaction.

"What's wrong, Cam?" he asked with slight confusion in his voice.

"Someone is pulling up in the drive way. Its Catherine Weaver and John Henry." She announced to John.

His face stiffened. Despite the turmoil he went through after the last few hours, the strife disappeared from Cameron's humor and light hearted mannerisms. But, his life slipped back into reality as Weaver and John Henry were about to enter their ravaged living room.

John heard what was left of the front door open.

* * *

Sarah's head focus upon the opening of the battered front door. She could see Weaver and John Henry before the door even opened completely.

They entered and looked around before speaking.

"What happened here?" the Scottish accent of Catherine Weaver filled the room.

"What does it look like?" Sarah raised her voice. "A damn T-888 busted in and tried to kill everyone." Sarah leaned her head into her hand.

"Where is it now?" John Henry asked.

"In the back. Cameron ripped its head off." Catherine Weaver started heading towards the back. "John took the chip out." She answered softly.

Catherine Weaver stopped in her tracks. "The chip? Where is it?" she asked reaching her hand out towards Sarah.

Sarah looked up from the couch and reached in her pocket. She tossed it to Catherine who effortlessly caught it. She took in it her index finger and thumb and examined it.

"It's still intact." She observed.

"Glad you noticed." Sarah said with a vicious smirk.

The chip exited Weaver's focus as it dropped to her side with her arm.

"I don't appreciate the attitude Ms. Connor. I didn't send the terminator here, neither did John Henry. If you can't remember I'm here to help your son win this war against Skynet, not aid it. If you can't believe that you can read it on the chip after John Henry scans it." Every word that exited her mouth as calm with a hint of hostility. She turned around and headed with to the basement with John Henry following close behind.

Sarah leaned back on the couch. She leaned her elbows onto her legs and curled forward. Her hands roughly stroked through her hair and a small sigh escaped her mouth.

A normal mother she knew she was not.

------------------

Everyone gathered in the basement with Catherine Weaver and John Henry in the center of the arc of the Connor resistance.

Sarah stepped forward and folded her arms. "So, what does that chip say?"

John rolled his eyes. His mother was always blunt and never too graceful with words.

Catherine Weaver took a few steps with her hand near her lips. "The CPU was fully intact and John Henry was able to get some useful and interesting information." Her steps stopped. "The terminator's CPU was reprogrammed before arriving at our residence."

"I'll give you one guess who was responsible for reprogramming it before sending it here." Sarah added.

"Kaliba." John responded, eyes on him. "So Skynet sent this terminator back for us and then it was reprogrammed by Kaliba?"

"Correct." John Henry responded. "The reprogramming was completely a consensual meeting. It seems that Skynet sent the terminator back specifically for Kaliba's reprogramming." He added.

Stacy's eyebrows rose. She shook her head. "That doesn't make any sense. Why would they send a terminator to be reprogrammed? Especially if we can trace that the fact Kaliba reprogrammed its CPU."

"Yes, that seems like a very unwise move." Cameron added with her arms to the side and her stoic robot face in full force.

A screen popped up behind John Henry and he turned around towards it. "I would like to show you something. It is from the terminator's CPU." The screen switched to several different images. "This further address the discovery of Kaliba's tampering. Sarah, I believe you met this man?"

"Edward Gaines." She whispered.

"Who?" Stacy asked.

"Edward Gaines, he apparently runs Kaliba. Another Gray, another proclaiming paradise here in our time." She spat.

"It seems to be the universal excuse." Catherine Weaver added as she turned her attention towards the screen.

John pointed. "There's George McCarthy." John squinted. "It seems like they're getting ready to move."

Cameron tilted her head. "It seems they are transporting, there is an 85 percent chance that it is a permanent move."

"Well, then we have to make sure that they don't get to their destination." Sarah commented much to John's dismay.

"Mom… we can't do that. Remember what happened last time we tried to get rid of Skynet?" he warned her.

"I know, John. But, this could be our last chance to thwart Skynet, to stop Judgment Day." She put her hands on his shoulders. "Don't you want a normal life?"

"My life will never be normal, mom. I've accepted it. Plus.. there's…. the address of the building we don't know it! It's a different building from last time!" He answered her.

"The address is 5576 Rotterdam Ave." Cameron answered. John's eyes shot her a look.

"The address is the image with George McCarthy." She added.

_Damn terminator vision._

He took another look at his mother who was still standing firm. Every time he stood up to his mother he always felt a lump in his throat and this time was no different.

All eyes were on them.

Sarah looked down and slowly raised her head. "Please, John. This is our last chance… and my last wish." She whispered, a tear dropped onto her arm.

John swallowed that lump. He knew exactly what she meant by that. He didn't know how much longer she had. His eyes watered up in reaction. He looked up at the screen John Henry brought up earlier. Images of Gaines, McCarthy, and Cain flooded his eyes. He closed his eyes tightly one more tear escaping.

"John."

"My rules, mom. My first rule is I'm coming with you. As leader of the Human Resistance, I'm coming with you." He strongly whispered a smile appeared on her face.

"I'm coming too." Stacy added.

Cameron walked over to John and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm not letting you go anywhere without me." John smiled that.

"John, I don't approve of this move." Catherine Weaver interjected. "But, I know there is no stopping this decision. John Henry and I will meet with Ellison again to get a contingency plan set up."

"Thanks." He simply answered which was responded with a nod from Catherine Weaver who left with John Henry.

John watched them head up the stairs before looking back at his mother.

"What are the orders, general?" she asked with a small smirk.

"Get the guns ready. We leave in an hour."

* * *

_So, as you can see... things have picked up a little... hahaha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Stay alert for the next one!! Review if you wish and thank you for reading. I always appreciate it. :) Thanks!_


	29. Follow the Yellow Brick Road

_Hello everyone. First I'd like to apologize to anyone who have been waiting patiently. I get pretty busy... most of the time. Anyway, here is the next chapter. Also, I would like to thank everyone who have been reading this story, I didn't think I'd have as many people like it. Puts a smile to my face. So... I'll try to have more than one update a month, it is tough though... my schedule and my brainstorming are having trouble mingling together. But, here is the next installment and I hope you all enjoy it. Ask questions and review if you feel the ambition to! Thanks again. :)_

------

Chapter 29: Follow the Yellow Brick Road

John's eyes focused on their black truck shining in the bright sun. His eyes squinted from the reflective beams from their vehicle. His concentrated hard on the truck, anything to get his eyes off the object of his frustration and intense focus, the Kaliba building across the street from their reconnaissance point. The simple little outdoor restaurant proved to be a perfect viewing point for the Connors. John's eyes refocused to the ground as he eyed the concrete through the textured glass. A pair of boots entered his line of sight; he followed the smooth legs up to find Cameron's face smiling at him.

"You did that on purpose." He whispered.

She leaned forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. She scanned him to prove her suspicions. "You're nervous. I figured something familiar would calm you down." She tilted her head, but not in her typical Cameron way. It was more human; her hair conformed to her movements and a small pout formed on her lips.

John gasped slightly at her genuine expressions. "Sorry… I just."

"Don't apologize, John. Just relax." She advised him.

"Yeah, well it's not everyday you infiltrate a corporation who created a sentient A.I. that destroys the world." He joked a little, but it was anything but a joke. Their small reconnaissance mission was making him sweat. After their last confrontation with Kaliba he knew one thing. He didn't want to relive any of it. John shook his head from the memory, but it stay latched to his brain playing the mental images over and over.

He remembered being held captive and his fear of losing his mother, his fear of losing Cameron. He lost Cameron once before, what would happen to him if he did again? It was something that was incomprehensible but completely possible. As his protector she was at risk just like he was and with Kaliba's growing interest in her, she was just a big a target as he was now. She was just as paramount to the human resistance as he was.

"Here is your iced tea." The waitress smiled as she placed the drink in front of Cameron, her eyes followed the glass to the table. John pushed himself away from his menacing reverie.

"And here is your soda." Another smile spread across the waitress' lips as she placed the drink in front of John.

A shallow smile graced his face. "Uh.. thanks." He picked up the glass and took a sip as the carbonated drink tickled his face, his eyes focused again on the bustling activity in front of the Kaliba building.

"How's the soda?" his mother asked taking a seat next to him.

"Fine, how was the bathroom?" he asked her.

"Just great." She smiled looking at her son and then redirecting her visual attention to the building.

"Figure anything out yet?" she asked sitting back in the chair folding her arms.

"Yes." Cameron answered her arms folded as well. "The garage seems the best entry point for us, the security will be minimal down there and it is concealed from the outside. It is also closest to the basement. Statistically, Skynet should be held in the basement for protection and security reasons."

"Security is a problem, mom." Pessimism drowned John's word as he looked towards his mother.

"We've gotten out of situations like this before, John. We can do it again. We have to." She answered back. She said it, she wanted to mean it, but how certain were her words? About as certain as the how long she had. She came to terms with that, but she felt an overwhelming need to help her son one more time before it was too late. This was her chance, but Sarah wasn't stupid she remembered the last encounter and was determined not to repeat it. The last thing she wanted to happen was to get caught with guns a blazing. The fears of those moments crept back into her head, the fear of her son being lost to her, the idea that she had failed her mission and in turn, failed the entire human rest. Without her son's survival, the human race would meet a fate of ash and suffering.

"It is not as easy as you make it sound, mom." He answered. She looked up from her feet and stared him in the eye.

"I know, but we can do it." She answered with confidence. She looked at her son and then Cameron who was completely focused on the garage entry, she looked closer to see what she was looking at, but John chimed in again.

John sighed with frustration as he stared at the Kaliba building. "But it's crawling with security." He shook his head and looked down at the table, his drink staring right back at him. Like a terminator, it beat him in the staring contest.

Cameron scanned a white truck leaving the scene.

**Vehicle: GM Truck, white.  
Label: Sweet Vendors  
License Plate Number: DPO 1442  
Destination: 25 Galveston Ave**

Cameron slowly turned her head watching the truck leave until she couldn't see it anymore.

"John is correct on that. It is not going to make our job an easy one." Cameron stated. John's eyes met with hers.

"You can say that again." John replied to her. The three remained silent for a second.

"Aren't you going to repeat what John just said?" Sarah joked staring at Cameron.

"No. I'm observations of human behavior have told me that me repeating what John said verbatim would be an obnoxious sarcastic response." She replied. "In this situation, it wouldn't be appropriate."

Sarah just stared while John smiled. "See mom. She's always learning."

"You can say that again." Cameron said with a small smirk taking a sip of her iced tea.

Another smile appeared on John's face.

------

Stacy cocked her gun as the door to the hotel room opened up.

"Oh, it's just you guys." She said placing the pistol back on the bed. John and Sarah entered the room followed by Cameron who scanned the hallway before closing the door.

Stacy flopped down on the bed and placed her hands underneath her head. "So… what's the verdict on Kaliba?"

John sighed and walked over towards her bed. "Well, they are definitely expecting something, with something being us. It is crawling with security."

She sat up. "Is it that bad?" her face scrunched with disappoint and with some relief. Stacy knew that the sheer idea of entering the lion's den was two steps above suicide.

"It's not going to be easy." Sarah spoke up, almost too quickly. Her arms were folded as she turned her head away from the curtained window, the light snuck through the thin material of the curtain. It lit up the room quite nicely, but it was the only calm and soothing detail in the room. Everything else was tense, the air was saturated with the short tempers and frustrated minds of the Connors.

Cameron spoke up. "There is one way we could slip past the outside interference. After we get in the garage it will be a different scenario, but as I said before, the security there is minimal."

Sarah completely turned around from the source of the tranquil light. "What is it?"

"I observed a truck delivery pulling out of the garage. It was a delivery from a company name Sweet Vendors. I was able to scan the make, model and license plate of that truck." She stated.

"How do we know that truck will be back? And if that, when?" Stacy asked, a little critical of the plot already.

"No… no… Cameron's right. The employees of those vendors are always assigned to specific buildings. They'll be back. We just have to figure out how…" John's hand connected with his chin. He looked up at as everyone's attention was on him.

"We could call the company and ask when their next delivery is to the Kaliba building." He suggested.

"Really? That's it?" Stacy asked. "We just call and ask?"

"Do you know how many ridiculous phone calls companies probably get? This will be one that will be forgotten." John answered her.

Sarah smiled. Her son, being resourceful. She couldn't help but feel that she succeeded in what had been placed on her shoulder all those years ago. Something that seemed so unattainable and absurd was now in view, in her son. Sarah remembered when Kyle first told her that she was the mother of destiny, that her son would be the leader of the human Resistance. He spoke of machines and how she trained her son to fight. The words were ludicrous, and she doubted herself even when training him. But now, she felt she had accomplished her mission and Kyle didn't die in vain to protect them both.

"John's right." Sarah spoke up. "We can easily find out their delivery schedule and follow them from their factory. We'll intercept them and take their truck. Easy."

"Yeah… easy." A sarcastic tone left Stacy's mouth.

Cameron walked over to the end table and opened the top drawer. She grabbed the phone book and started flipping through the pages. Her finger pointed to a number as she walked over towards John.

"Found the number." She told him.

He smiled. "Cool. How did you know the phone book was in there?"

"I remember that the phone books and bibles were kept in the drawers from the last hotel we stayed at, well before we confronted Catherine Weaver at Zeira Corp." she answered scanning the number before closing the book.

John looked away. The last hotel, the last time he spent time with Cameron before she submitted to chip extraction to assist John Henry. The intimate moment they shared before she spoke up.

_John slowly opened his eyes to see someone sitting right next to him. Instinctively he rolled over. He calmed down to see Cameron sitting next to him._

_ "Don't do that." He spat. Cameron turned her head slightly anticipating his next sentence._

"_My mom used to do that, I hate that."_

_She didn't say anything; there was a longing in her face. She was hiding something, she almost seemed sad about something._

_He broke the silence. "What's going on?"_

"_You need to understand how it works." She cryptically stated._

_His eyebrows came together; he would've been able to figure it out if he wasn't so sleepy. "What?" he murmured._

_She whispered the answer, the words dropping off her lips. "This chip, this body. This software is designed to terminate humans. The hardware is designed to terminate humans. That's our sole function." She said with such an emotionless tone._

_John shook his head ever so slightly, so unnoticeable. "Not you."_

"_No." she paused. "Not anymore. But what was there is still there and it will always be there." She waited for his response._

_He looked down contemplating her words, piecing the picture together. His head nodded with the answer. "So down deep you want to kill me?" His voice climbed at the words "kill me" and it was more of a statement than a question. He knew the answer._

_She was quick to respond, a little too quickly for John's liking. "Yes. I do."_

_He sat up with cautious confidence. "Then why don't you?" Is it possible? Can you love me? You are the most advanced model, capable of more than I ever thought._

"_I might someday." She answered. Not the answer he hoped._

"_I have to show you something." She removed herself from the bed and stood up not taking her eyes off of John._

_What was she doing? He thought to himself._

_Her hands grasped the end of her shirt and it slowly disappeared and revealed her soft skin._

"_This body."_

_His mouth dropped slightly. What is she doing? He thought._

_She removed her bra. John swallowed and couldn't help but stare. John had seen her topless before, but he still got nervous._

_She slowly lay down. "Get on top of me." He hesitated, but he finally headed towards her vulnerable body._

"_Put your knee here." She instructed. He nodded. He watched her take something out of her pocket, the sound of the blade revealed the knife in her hand. She handed it to John. He grasped it tightly, mostly from his nerves being in overdrive._

"_Right here." Another instruction left Cameron's mouth._

_John lowered the knife but stopped. He couldn't hurt her. Hurt her? How could I hurt her? She's a machine._

_She reassured him. "If I'm damaged, we'll know."_

_The sound of the flesh separating always made John gasp, even if it was fake skin, he placed the knife to his side. Cameron grimaced at the knife entering her body._

"_Reach down… under the breast plate."_

_His hand lowered underneath her flesh, entering the part of her concealed, making her the advanced infiltrator that she was._

"_There." She said. John's hand stopped. "What does it feel like?" she asked. The hand next to Cameron's hand gripped the pillow tighter._

_He dropped the words out of his mouth. "It's cold. That's good, right?" he asked softly and nervously._

"_It's good." His face got closer, his lips moved and his face hovered right above hers._

"_It's perfect." Even closer now. The silence was tense._

"_John…." She paused; she didn't want to finish her sentence. She wanted to stay there just a little longer, but she had to what was up next. There was no choice._

"_It's time to go."_

John shook his head as his eyes landed back on Cameron. She looked at him quizzically.

"Are you okay, John?" she asked softly.

"I'm fine." He smiled. "You're always learning." He nodded towards the phone book.

She looked back at the book and then back at John quickly connecting the words that left his mouth.

"Yes. I'm always learning." She answered.

"Hello." Cameron greeted with her cell phone to her face. "I was wondering when the next delivery to the Kaliba building was?"

"Why? Because we have a tour we want to schedule and we wish to schedule it around your delivery date."

John watched and nodded his head. _Nice reason, Cameron._ He thought to himself.

"Thank you." She closed the phone and placed her eyes on John.

"The next delivery date is Thursday. It seems someone forgot the beverages, so they must return this Thursday rather than next Tuesday." She answered John's question before it left his mouth.

"Awesome." He said with an uncertain tone.

Cameron's concern was like clockwork. "What's wrong?"

"I'm not too sure about this, Cameron. I know it could be our last chance to stop Skynet and I know my mother is not going to stop, but Weaver said it is inevitable. Isn't this futile Cameron? Are we walking to our deaths?" His arms expanded at the end of his lament. He couldn't hold his frustration in anymore, the conflict in his head was demanding more space and he didn't have it.

"She may say that, but anything can happen, John. It's fickle, John."

"Fickle? What is?" he asked.

"Tomorrow. The future. The future isn't set. There could still be a chance, John." She answered.

His eyes located her. "We'll find out won't we?" Cameron looked away from John as Sarah entered the room.

"Did you call them?" she asked, her arms folded.

"Yes. The next delivery is this Thursday. We'll wait for the truck to leave and then follow them."

"Good." She nodded her eyes on John before she left the room.

"I don't think she likes us being alone, John." Cameron commented.

"I know she doesn't." he said with a smile, he grabbed her hand and thumbed at her ring.

"You never take this off, do you?" he asked her, his thumb circling the smooth diamond again.

"No, I don't. Only when I shower, I never let it leave my finger otherwise." She dropped her eyes at the ring and slowly towards John revealing a smile on her face. "I'm not going to remove it, John. It is my favorite possession."

He smiled. "I'm glad you love it."

She got closer to John. "I love you." She whispered.

John's mouth opened, his breath caressing her lips which were slightly parted.

"And I love you." He whispered back at her before closing the gap between their lips.

------

She coughed; she covered her mouth to muffle the cough. She didn't want John to hear her. Sarah was always one to hide any sort of weakness, even one that was as natural as illness. There was a time John thought she walked on water. She wanted to always walk on water, to things to go smoothly, to be healthy and in control all the time. Life however, rarely abided by these requests.

She uncovered her mouth and ran her hands under the warm water. She closed her eyes; the water was soothing and calmed her frenetic mind. It was amazing how something as simple as washing your hands can halt everything bothering you, everything that was pestering someone, everything that was unsettling, festering in the back of your mind.

She coughed again softly as she turned the faucet off, several squeaks exiting the interior of the faucet knob. Sarah grabbed the towel off the rack and dried her hands. She coughed again and instinctively covered her mouth.

_I washed my hands for a reason._ She thought.

The door creaked open.

"Mom?" Sarah heard from the other side.

She panicked. She didn't want John to see her, she was exposed, and her armor was down. She didn't utter a word.

"I heard you coughing in there. Are you alright?" he asked her, the raise in his voice showing his genuine concern. How could she deny that?

But she did. "I'm fine, John. I'm just washing my hands before I head to bed." It wasn't a complete lie, but she was hiding something.

Should he push it further? He wasn't so sure, despite being ill his mother was still hard as nails. Despite being late at night, his mother was still hard as nails.

He did. "Are you sure?"

She closed her eyes tightly. "Yes, John. You should get some sleep. You need your rest."

He nodded. "Sure. So do you, you rest too." He whispered before leaving the bathroom entrance.

She hated pushing her son away, but she didn't want him to see her like this. She was feeble and weak. She wanted to walk on water so badly, but she didn't, she never did. Sarah knew that her hourglass was dropping the sand steadily, but what if they lived through this and her mission was over? They defeat Skynet come this Thursday. She would still die… she was still a fugitive, treatment would come with the price of a barred room and visitation hours, periodic and sporadic moments of seeing the one person that kept her going, her son. She couldn't live like that, not again, not after suffering through Pescadero. And if they failed? She didn't want to think of that option and its dim possibilities.

She exited the bathroom and turned the light off; she fell into her bed and closed her eyes.

To walk on water.

She wished the Wizard of Oz could heal her.

But she would need to follow the yellow brick road.

-----

The four of them sat in the truck. John and Cameron sat in the front with Stacy and Sarah in the back. John sat back in the driver's seat with his hand rubbing his chin; he was starting to get impatient. He wanted this over with, but he never wanted it to start. The conflict revealed itself as he rubbed his chin harder. Cameron calmly turned her head towards John.

"Why are you doing that?" she asked him.

He looked at her and took his hand away from his chin. "Sorry. I didn't realize I was doing it."

"You should calm down. You'll function better if you relax." She whispered placing a hand on his shoulder.

He knew that, but her soothing voice was nothing he could get angered at. He slowly nodded his head. "You're right." He smiled.

She smiled back.

"Hey, you sure we're at the right spot? I haven't seen one of these vendor trucks since we got here." Stacy asked, feeling the anxiety was experiencing just seconds ago.

"I am positive. We should be seeing it soon." Cameron stated with confidence.

John smiled at her and then stared out the window. He pointed.

"Cameron." He got her attention. "Look." She looked at the windshield to see a Sweet Vendor truck waiting at the red light up ahead.

She squinted and scanned the truck.

"Why are you squinting?" he asked her.

She answered without losing focus on the vehicle. "I'm scanning the truck."

**License plate: DPO 1442  
Identity Positive.**

Her eyes relaxed and she looked at John.

"I'm always learning." She smiled.

He smiled back at her.

"That's them." She stated.

John started the car and made the move. It was time. He stepped on the gas, the engine made a subtle growl as he pulled up closer towards the white van. He slowly made a left turn and pulled over to the side of the road. Their light turned green and the white van passed them. He shifted back into drive and followed them.

"It's two car lengths right?" he asked with a nervous smile.

Cameron nodded. "Any shorter and we risk suspicion." She warned.

"Gotcha." He answered back his hands gripping the wheel tightly.

Sarah leaned forward, the seatbelt stretched out. John eyed her head popping out from the side of his seat.

"Be careful, John." She warned him the mother in her voice coming out.

"I know, mom. I'll be careful. Don't worry." He answered back.

He pressed his foot on the pedal, his eyes moved to the speedometer as he watched the orange hand move pass each number. He shook his head.

"John, what's up?" Sarah asked him.

"This isn't going to work." He made a quick left turn down the street; the sound of rubber disagreeing with asphalt filled their car.

"What the hell are you doing, John?" Sarah yelled, worried that her son was having second thoughts.

Well she knew second thoughts were rampant in his head, he didn't totally agree with this plan, but she knew he wouldn't abort, would he?

He made a right and continued down the new street. The orange hand continued to climb.

"Don't worry, mom. I know what's going through your head right now, and you're wrong. Just trust me." He told her gripping the wheel.

Sarah sat back and held onto the door handles. Normally Sarah was harder than nuclear nails, a speeding car wasn't going to make her nervous, but being ill wasn't helping. Also she was the one at the wheel, not her son.

_This is what it feels like to be a normal mom? Worried about your son while driving? Except I'm sure normal parents don't let their son do 65 down a side street._

Sarah shifted along with everyone else to the left as the car made a sharp right. Sarah gained her composure and saw the red light ahead of them.

"John!" she yelled.

He stepped on the brakes, but it was too late, he went through the light…

-----

"Alright, we have to deliver these soft drinks to Kaliba." The passenger said.

"I know I know, I'm heading there right now." The driver answered.

"I'm just reiterating because apparently you don't follow the directions the first time." He retorted.

"Oh, I'm sorry I made a mistake. I apologize for forgetting the damn drinks in the van even though you told me not too! I'm sorry I ruined your morning… I'm…" he was cut off.

"Brakes now!" The passenger yelled grabbing the wheel. The driver made the screams a duet as he saw a black truck in front of them. His foot dug into the brake as the noise of the friction between the tires and the road created an obnoxious symphony in their ears.

They stopped… just in time. They looked up to see the black truck with its doors open, and then they felt the barrels of guns to the back of their neck. The two sat up straight and instantly put their hands in the air.

"Please… will give you money… or the drinks if you want… please."

"Shut up." John said. "We don't want any of that. We just want to hitch a ride… to Kaliba." He finished.

The driver nodded. "Whatever you want."

He turned and looked at his mother. "We're good to go."

-----

Cameron sat behind the two vendors with a pistol in her hand as John rode in the back with her mother. Their heads bobbed as each tire met with a bump in the road. Sarah traced the pistol with her finger.

"You know, John… that move you pulled was really stupid… with the truck? What if they didn't stop?" she asked him.

"I was banking on they would. I took a chance." He answered her.

"You took a chance." She repeated. "You took a chance and…" she looked up at her son with a smile. "It paid off and I'm proud of you, John."

"Thanks mom." He returned her smile and placed an arm around her bringing her in close.

Cameron turned around. "We're here." She told them.

The two broke up their embrace and hid underneath a blanket covering the soft drinks and snacks. Cameron got on her back before cocking her pistol. The truck came to a stop in front of the garage entrance as a security guard came to the driver side window.

"Good morning." The driver said with a crooked smile.

"Good morning." The guard answered. "Weren't you two here on Tuesday?"

"Yeah, but we forgot to refill the soda vending machines. I'm pretty sure our company called yours about it. They said you would be expecting us." He explained.

The guard nodded, he couldn't be bothered. "Sure… I think I remember that. Alright, move along." He waved them in.

John felt the truck slowly moving.

_Easier done than said? _He thought to himself. Finally something went according to plan… so far.

They took the blanket off them and looked towards the driver. "Is it safe?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah, uhh.. I mean… pretty much. We're in the garage. They're never any guards here… I don't know why." He answered nervously.

Cameron sat up. "I detect no guards in the vicinity of our area." She reinforced the driver's nervous answer.

"How could she possibly know that?" he asked bringing the van to a stop.

John ignored him as he opened the back doors, the sound echoing through the garage. He exited with his mother as Cameron climbed out through the side door with her pistol in hand. Sarah took out her pistol as the three headed for the stairwell.

This was it. This was their chance, their last chance to stop Skynet. To gain a normal life, to save mankind.

Perhaps Cameron was right. Perhaps tomorrow is fickle.

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_Hope you liked it. Review if you like! They are always appreciated. :) 'til next time._


	30. Inside the Lion's Den Part One

_Hello everybody. Sorry with the wait... its a vicious cycle unfortunately. First off, I would like to wish everyone a happy holidays. I hope everyone will have a fun holiday and vacation this year! I also wish everyone gets what they want and hopefully this chapter is one of those things. This is my Christmas gift to you all. I know if may seem shorter than usual, but it is the logical closure point for this chapter in my opinion. I tried writing more, but it wasn't right. That's the reason for the split chapter. Only a few more chapters more, folks, but I'm sure you figured that out already. Again, happy holidays and New Year... I'm sure there won't be another update before that. :( Sorry.... like I said... vicious cycle. Happy holidays! Review and ask questions if you have any! Sorry if there are errors by the way..._

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Chapter 30: Inside the Lion's Den - Part 1

The heavy stairwell door closed behind the Connors as they headed up the stairs. The loud noise caused Sarah and John to look back, but Cameron continued up the stairs with a pistol in her hand.

"Just the door, let's keep moving." She whispered. "There is only one way to access the basement, that is from the 1st floor elevator." She added.

"How are we going to slip into the elevator in the lobby of the 1st floor?" John asked, frustrated with the impossibility of their task.

"We'll figure it out, John." His mother said in a stern voice, she wanted quiet. She needed quiet. The mother that was harder than nuclear nails needed silence to concentrate. How would they pass security on the 1st floor? On top of that, Sarah felt her cold sweats returning. She wiped her forehead with the gray sleeve of her shirt; the gray turned a darker shade as it connected with her cold skin.

John turned around to find his mother leaning on the banister. He headed towards her side and put an arm around her.

"Mom, are you okay?" he asked her. His concern couldn't be masked.

She took a deep breath and looked up at John. She faked a smile. "I'll be fine."

He grimaced, but he wasn't going to push the matter now. Especially within a building swarming with Skynet loyalists, it wasn't the "right" time. "Alright, but we should keep moving. Cameron said we're on the first floor."

John's eyes went back towards Cameron's direction; she kept herself underneath the small window on the stairwell door. She kept herself eye level with the bottom of the window, she scanned for threats.

She got down to her knees and met with John who joined her side.

"What's the status?" he asked with a sense of urgency in his voice.

Cameron detected it, but how could she blame him? He had a complete right to be nervous. It was tactically dangerous, but she knew he wouldn't refuse his mother's wish or abandon her side right now.

He was being human. Something she had learned to understand even more. John had open doors for her that she never even comprehended, and even when they were visible to her, they were still locked up tight with the key missing. But John one the key keeper and opened the doors of humanity for her, she stepped through them.

Her apparent value of human life and comprehension had made her a target to Skynet, just as much as John was. She knew she had to protect herself as much as Sarah and John if she didn't want anything compromised. But, with her human instincts kicking in, she was quite pessimistic about this whole situation.

"It's clear, no visible threats. No guards." She said.

Perhaps her pessimism was misplaced.

"But, I suggest waiting for at least thirty seconds. It seems suspicious to have their lobby empty of security." She explained.

John nodded. "I agree. Give the lobby another look around."

She nodded. "Will do."

He took a few steps back towards his mother who was resting on the steps still gripping her pistol tightly.

"Cameron says its clear, but before you move she's scanning again. She's pretty suspicious of the lack of security in their lobby." John explained.

Sarah sighed. "I kind of wish there were guards there, it would be a definitive answer."

"I don't know about that, but I get where you're coming from." He told her.

Cameron's head turned towards the stairs, her eyes focused up the stair well.

"Cameron, what's wrong?" he asked a little unnerved. He knew something couldn't be good.

"Someone's coming. One person, the ninth floor." John looked at her quizzically.

"I heard the door close. They are quite loud." Cameron warned as she stood up with her pistol in her hand.

John remembered her sensitive terminator senses. He had found himself more and more forgetting that she is a cyborg sometimes. But she was right; he could hear sporadic footsteps dropping onto each step.

He turned towards Cameron, but she wasn't there.

"Cameron?" he looked around, but he only heard rhythmic footsteps of her combat boots. "Cameron! Shit." He said in a forceful whisper.

He took his mother's pistol and headed towards the next set of stairs.

"John, get back here! She can handle herself!" her motherly tone became the prominent voice in the stairwell.

He looked up the steps pointing his pistol where he could hear descending footsteps. He found a man dressed in a suit with his hands up with Cameron behind him. He smiled returning Cameron smiles, her head appearing over the man's shoulder.

"You were right, mom. She could handle it herself."

------

Stacy took an anxious sip from her soda as she gripped the handles of her bag, a black bag full of metal reinforcement for the Connors. She was ready to run when they needed her, but so far there was no sign of disturbance or call on the phone.

Stacy put the glass down hard against the glass of the table; the droplets of condensation flew off and splashed on her fingers and the table. She was nervous and she knew it. She was hoping for the call just to get rid of that preliminary anxiety. It was something she was all too familiar with though.

_The sound of plasma and bullets flying by filled her ears as she sat down in a derelict abandoned bunker, her legs were curled up and plasma rifle by her side along with a black bag full of pipe bombs._

_ Stacy was ordered to wait for the signal before making a run for it. She closed her eyes._

_ "Stacy."_

_ "Yes?"_

_ "You know what you have to do, right?"_

_ "Wait for the signal, once received I have to place these pipe bombs you made to destroy the HK-Tank before it reaches Connor's Camp." She answered._

_ He nodded. "Good. I've been making those pipe bombs since I was young, they won't fail you. Make sure you stay right behind me and get in your position. I'll give you the signal when it's time."_

_ She nodded._

_ "Good luck, Stacy."_

_ "Good luck, Reese."_

_ The door opened and Kyle and her made a run for it. The rusted door turned into a rusted landscape. Stacy always gasped at the world after Skynet ravaged it. The scars from falling skyscrapers, automobiles, and humans were too evident. She wondered if they won, how would they clean this up? She ran with the bag on her shoulder and her finger on the trigger of her plasma rifle. She kept low as HK's were in the air and she of course wanted to stay clear of the triple 8's if they were roaming the area._

_ Stacy sped up the closer she got to her destination, she slid against the ground causing the rubble to fly into her face, but she made it. She leaned up against the cement wall that Kyle ordered her to wait at. She took a deep breath, she made it to where she had to go and opened the bag and pulled out the first pipe bomb with a hand on the pipe bomb's handle. One twist would ignite the fuse. Stacy looked over from her position. Where was Kyle? She could feel the sweat make its way through her pores again._

-----

Stacy shook her head and found herself sitting at the table again. Her hand clenched tightly on what she thought was the pipe bomb, but it was damp and cold. She looked down to see her soda in her hand, the condensation enveloping her fingers. Stacy loosened her grip on the soda and then relaxed her head looking down at her feet. She saw the veins rising in her skin on the hand that held the bag of weapons. Her fingers grew apart and the handles fell to the bag blending in with the blackness.

She took a deep breath and then took another sip of her soda. Another cold breath left her lungs and escaped into the air around her. Another tight grasp on the glass brought a chill through her body.

"My nerves are still the same…" she whispered to herself.

-----

The elevator doors closed in front of the four, one being Cameron's newly acquired hostage.

"The basement please." She asked politely poking the gun into his back.

He nodded nervously and removed a keycard waving it in front of a sensor. It beeped in compliance and they felt the shift in weight of the elevator making its descent.

John observed the employee, the sweat dripping down his forehead and his hands in shaking fists.

"Do you know what's down there?" he asked.

"No! I just work on the maintenance systems down there; I was offered this job without an interview! I have no idea what goes on there…" he spoke quickly, his nerves were on edge.

John nodded. _Not a Gray. There was no way, his too nervous and if he was… this wouldn't have been so easy._ He thought to himself.

The elevator stopped and a beep announced its arrival to the basement. The doors opened and Cameron stuck here head out, pistol in her hand.

"Clear. Let's move." She whispered.

The employee watched as John and Cameron stepped out. He turned around to see the butt of Sarah's gun hit him.

"Sorry." She whispered.

Cameron turned around to see Sarah picking him up from his shoulders.

"Want to give me a hand?" she asked.

Cameron nodded and picked him up with one hand and placed him over her shoulder. She walked up to the closest door and scanned it.

"Closet." She broke the lock and dumped him inside.

John closed the door and turned around to see his mother.

"Let's find Skynet." He ordered. She nodded in return and Cameron joined John's side scanning for threats.

John's eyes landed on Cameron who didn't even notice his staring. Her protection of John wasn't just because he was the future leader of the human resistance. He could see it in her eyes, yes her eyes. They continually rolled around in her head looking for threats. She was protecting him because she loved him. It made him smile to himself; she had truly learned the complexities of humanity. Her eyes found his and he went wide eyed, a little embarrassed and taken back by her return in staring.

"Why are you looking at me, John?" she asked.

"I uh… just…" he trailed off with his mother staying right next to him. Not only did it make him uncomfortable to physically or verbally show any affection towards Cameron in front of her, it was hardly the right time for this, which would be the first words at of his mother's mouth followed by the affection to a machine.

"Let's not talk about it right now." He whispered to Cameron, he could feel his mother's eyes on him.

She nodded. "You're right. Not the best time."

Sarah peeked pass the corner.

"I don't see anything. Where is everyone?" she asked.

John shook his head. "I don't know, but keep your guard up. They know we're here."

"Yeah, it's been too quiet." Sarah added.

Cameron and Sarah circled around John with the guns in the ready position as they headed down the next part of the corridor. The lights flickered, and besides the sounds of their light footsteps the sound of the flickering light fixtures was the only sound accompanying the trio.

Cameron stopped and tilted her head as she stared down the only door in the hallway.

"I've scanned the room; there is an immense usage of power inside that room. There is an 87 percent possibility that Skynet is behind that door." Cameron stated.

Sarah slowly walked up to the door leaving John's side.

"Mom, wait. We should think this through, call Stacy first."

She ignored her son.

"Mom!"

His words didn't register as her foot met with the door.

The door's hinges erupted in a crackling sound as the metal frame of the door flew open and collided with the wall on the other side. Sarah entered with her pistol in hand pointing it at anything that moves.

John ran after her. "Mom! Wait!"

He ran with his mother with Cameron following close behind. The darkness of the room lit up instantly, as the lights turned on in sequence, one section after another finally covering the entire room in light.

At end was a mainframe of computers, it activated as the three took steps closer. A panel of the wall exited and it revealed a screen which displayed the words spoken by the computer.

"Welcome, I've been expecting you."

Sarah remembered that voice.

"Skynet." She whispered.

"Correct." The letters appeared one at a time in red on the monitor. The word's red stabbed John in the chest, he swallowed hard. This was it, he could feel the tension.

"You may have been surprised how easy you three were able to infiltrate." Skynet spoke

John stepped forward. "Yeah, it did enter my mind. But I also know you let us in. We're not fools."

"No, you're human." It responded. The words quickly disappeared off the monitor and were replaced by flashing red.

The lights in the room also flashed red. John looked up as the blinding red lights flashed in rhythm.

"We should get out of here. That is the alarm. Security will be here soon." Cameron calmly stated as John frantically looked around.

"Come on, mom. We have to go!" he yelled grabbing her arm.

She just stared at the computers down the room, not once blinking.

"Mom, we have to go." He said again with a stern voice this time.

Her trance was disrupted; she looked up at her son and swallowed hard.

"You two go, John." She whispered.

John's mouth went agape. "Mom? What are you talking about? We can still get out of here? What would you do?" he questioned frantically.

Cameron walked up to Sarah and picked her up.

"Put me down!" she yelled.

"Let's get out of here. Time to go, John." Cameron headed out the room with John following behind with Sarah's pistol and phone in the other.

John ran passed Cameron and pressed the elevator button waiting for it to get to their floor. Cameron put Sarah down next to him. She took her pistol back from John angrily.

"John, sons usually respect their mother's requests." She stated.

"Not all sons are the leader of mankind." He answered as the elevator beeped and the doors separated. They entered quickly as the doors closed behind them.

-----

Stacy looked up from her last sip of her second soda. From the corner of her eye she saw a swarm of security run into the building. She placed the glass down hard against the table along with some money. She placed the bag around her shoulder and headed for her truck.

Stacy threw the bag in the truck and slammed the door and placed the keys in the ignition all in one swift motion. The engine roared as it started and she drove towards the garage entrance. She sped up through the entrance colliding with the striped barriers, they split apart with wooden debris scattering underneath the truck, and she turned the wheel and stepped on the brake. The truck came to a halt with the screeching noises of the tires echoing throughout the garage. She quickly hopped out and grabbed the bag.

"No guards at the entrance. They must all be after them. I have to find them." She whispered as she headed towards the stairwell.

-----

Another guard fell to the ground as Cameron fired another round. The gun shots continued to ring out.

"Damn it." Sarah said in frustration. "We can't get out of here. They've shut down the elevator and were stuck on the fourth floor!" she yelled into the phone. "You better be here soon!" she closed the phone.

"Stacy is in the building. She'll be coming with some of our weapons." Sarah stated while taking aim again.

John stayed inside the elevator next to Cameron who returned fire on the security guards.

"How many are out there?" he asked yelling over the gun shot fire.

"They just keep coming out of the woodwork, John!" Sarah yelled.

"It would be wise if we moved." Cameron said before standing up to her feet firing off my rounds, she removed the magazine and entered another one. "Get behind me!" she yelled taking several steps in front of Sarah and John while grabbing Sarah's pistol, she opened fire on the security guards who scattered and ran for cover. Cameron backed up around the corner before running with John and Sarah behind her. Cameron kicked the door at the end of the hall in and turned around.

"Get in." she stated. John and Sarah nodded before Cameron walked in and closed the door. She pushed the desk with ease against the door and turned to John and Sarah.

"Well we're trapped. What do we do now?" John asked in frustration to Cameron.

She looked at him and then the window.

"We take an alternative route." She smiled. "You should call Stacy."

-----

Stacy continued up the stairs now armed with an assault rifle. She needed to be prepared, from what she heard through the phone speakers, she needed to prepare for a dogfight. With the black bag on her back she slowly went up each step towards her destination.

"Meet you on the third floor?" She whispered into the phone. "I'm on the second floor now." She answered Sarah who was on the other side of the phone. "I got it." She hung up. She cocked the gun and loaded the first bullet in the chamber. Her ascent up the stairs got deliberately slower as she got closer to the third floor.

------

"I can't believe we're doing this." John's voice was higher than usual. He lowered himself into Cameron's arms as he was the last one to step onto the cleaning platform. The wind blew through Cameron's hair, but just as her usual robot self, it didn't bother her. Sarah shook her head to remove the hair from her mouth but it was futile. The wind continued to have its way with her hair.

Cameron reached for the switch and lowered the platform to the third floor. It stopped suddenly as she removed her hand from the switch. She wound up and struck the glass, it shattered instantly and collapsed into the room.

"Let's move." She said.

Sarah nodded and headed into the room, she removed the gun from her pants.

John grabbed Cameron's hand. He removed the glass from her hand.

"You okay?" he asked with concern.

"Yes, but I don't think this is the time for this." She answered walking through the window. Cameron turned around and put her hand out to John.

"You're right, sorry." He grabbed her hand and walked through the window.

The crackle of glass snuck into John's ears as he stepped on the debris beneath him. He jumped onto the floor and let go of Cameron's hand, albeit slowly.

Sarah grabbed the door handle and turned it opening the door just enough to see. Her eyes roamed as much of the hallway she could see, she opened it completely and put her pistol in a defensive position. She looked towards John and Cameron and nodded her head towards the hallway.

"Come on." She whispered heading out ahead of them.

-----

The ground went flat as the last step was reached. Stacy's boots clicked on the floor as she reached for the door handle. She slowly opened the door and stuck out the barrel of the rifle. She looked around for any sign of security when the barrel of her rifle was grabbed.

"Hey!" she yelled as she was dragged out of the doorway by the rifle. She let go and grabbed her pistol pointing it at Sarah.

"Good to see you." Sarah smirked throwing the rifle back at her. She caught it and threw the bag to the ground.

"I got something for you." She answered with her own smirk and sassiness.

Sarah unzipped it to reveal the Connor's small arsenal. She took out the shotgun and handed it to John. He caught it and cocked it. Another gun was thrown to Cameron and she loaded the chamber to the machine gun while Sarah took the last shotgun cocking it.

"Okay." She said standing up from the emptied bag.

John spoke up. "I think this how plan was well… ill-conceived. It was obviously waiting for us. There is no way we can get back to Skynet. We need to get out of here."

Sarah shook her head in denial, but she knew John was right. She knew that Catherine was right; she knew everyone was right except for her. Skynet and Judgment Day were inevitable. But what else was she suppose to do? Her son was completely independent now. He was an adult, he may only be seventeen but being chased by killer robots can mature and shed the innocence fast. Plus, he had Cameron. As much as she hated to admit it, she was persistent and her growing human affections made her the perfect candidate as John's protector after she disappeared. How long did she have? She was ill…. A trip to the hospital would land her in jail, either way she wouldn't see her son.

_Tomorrow is fickle._

Words spoken by John's cyborg lover.

Were they true? If they were… that means that Judgment Day could be stopped. Skynet can be destroyed. She'd rather die trying than have a pitiful disease take her.

She cocked her shotgun and turned around. "We're going back after it." She said with determination.

John's eyes opened wide. "Are you serious?" he exclaimed. "We were ambushed. It knew we were coming, we aren't ready for this!" he retorted.

"Tomorrow is fickle, John. Aren't those the words out of her mouth?" she pointed at Cameron. "We can still change the future. I'm going to try. I need this, John. I must try. I promised you that I would stop it. Remember that?" she lamented.

John slowly nodded. "I remember…" he answered softly. "But, that was before all of this."

Sarah placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know, but it doesn't change the fact that I promised that to you. I'm your mother… I don't walk on water, but I want to keep my promises to my son." She said warmly.

John looked into her eyes. "Okay… we need to get back to the basement." He said softly.

Sarah embraced John and then gave him a smile. "Let's go keep that promise."

"Yeah. Let's go." He answered heading for the stairs.

* * *

_Happy holidays one more time. Review if you like! Thanks again for reading._


	31. Inside the Lion's Den Part Two

_Hello everyone. I'm glad to be posting this after another way too long gap in posting. It takes me a while to develop this stuff, I'm a novice writer. :P Anyway, if you couldn't tell by the tone and pacing of the last "half-chapter", this story is coming to an end! It has taken me a while to decide a couple of factors for the ending, but I feel I have one that I am satisfied with. Whether you like it or not will depend on you of course. I would like to thank everyone who supported me and this story. Thank you, but it isn't over just yet! So stay tuned and keep on reading and reviewing._

_Also... I know the story may seem to be moving a tad fast right now, but it is the action writing that causes me to do that! I'm not too great at the action writing.... but the support so far has been nice. Thank you once again. Also I'm attending graduate school in a couple of weeks, so I'm going to try to get the next chapter up before that... cause if I don't, an update might take longer than usual. Damn school.  
_

_Thank you for reading and please review if you have the urge. Thank you!!  
_

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Chapter 31: Inside the Lion's Den – Part Two

The sound of their footsteps was the only thing filling the open space of the stair well. John stood behind Cameron with a shotgun in his hands as Cameron held her machine in two hands. Her eyes were constantly moving in her head, scanning for threats. Her super sensitive cyborg ears were also on the alert.

_No sign of any threats._

Sarah wiped her forehead of moisture again. It seemed every floor they passed her sleeve would meet with her skin. It was like clockwork.

_Like clockwork._ She thought. Sarah looked up at the wall for any sign of what floor they were on. With her illness getting the best of her, she needed to concentrate walking down the stairs and grasping her shotgun, not what floor she was on.

_Second floor._ She sighed to herself with relief. _Almost there._

Stacy bumped into Sarah who was staying still. Sarah stumbled forward and shook her head. Stacy placed the gun on her shoulder and shifted her weight onto her right leg.

"You alright?" she asked.

Sarah shook her head again. "Yeah, I'm fine." She looked away from Stacy and placed her right hand on the bottom of the shotgun. "Let's keep moving."

John heard the small exchange of words behind him, but he couldn't stop. He needed to keep moving. One more thing entering his mind wouldn't do him well. His grip on the shotgun got tighter. The shells on top shook from his nerves. Cameron turned around slowly, her eyes on him first before her whole body confronted him.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly.

"Yeah… just a lot on the mind." He started.

She continued walking down the stairs, slowing up though, delaying the first floor. "Like what?" she asked.

"Well first off… we're inside the lion's den, Cameron. I'm sure you noticed that."

"Yes I did." She answered him stoically. She ignored his small attitude for now as much as it displeased her.

"Also… my mom, Cameron." His attitude disappeared. Cameron's face softened at his melancholy tone. "She isn't doing so great right now… right now! In here!" he shook his head. "What else can go wrong?" he asked.

She looked at him intently and walked up to him, closing the gap between the two. His eyes answered her stare; he didn't blink just like her. He waited for words to leave her mouth.

"I understand how you feel, John. I empathize with your situation, but we really need to move on right now." She said with some urgency, but with a real sense of care and love.

John stood there for a moment letting her words fill his mind. Did she really understand how he felt? Sure, she never lost anyone… or was close… but then again… John let that thought have one more look over. She had lost someone before. She saw it in her eyes when they were alone in the motel. She knew that she was leaving, that she was going to lose him. Cameron lost him when he sent her back in time; that was John she knew first. John let the words rotate around his head one more time. He nodded slowly and a small smile crept on his face. "I know you understand. You're more human than you realize. You're right. Let's keep going." John couldn't keep his urges down; he closed the rest of the gap and placed his lips on hers. The two smiled at each other.

"Ahem." The voice cut through the tenderness of the moment.

John and Cameron turned around to see Sarah with a shotgun in her hands loading the rest of the shells.

"Please don't do that." She walked passed them cutting in between them. Stacy followed after her.

John looked down and shook his head with a smile and a small laugh. Cameron's eyes kept him in her sight waiting for a verbal response.

"I'm better now." He looked up towards Cameron who returned his smile and nodded at him.

"Let's keep moving." She told him. John lifted the gun back up and headed down the rest of the stairs with Cameron by his side.

----

The four of them stood at the door to the first floor lobby. John peeked his head over the window border and looked around.

"It looks clear." He turned around. "Cameron, take a look." He requested.

Cameron walked to the window and leaned her head towards it. John waited and watched her as she performed her normal scans.

"It's clear. Let's move to the elevator quickly, however. I do detect movement from outside." She advised.

John nodded and followed her out. Stacy and Sarah put their guns in a defensive position as they were now exposed in the lobby of the Kaliba building. Cameron pressed the down button on the elevator and turned around scanning once again, she stood in front of John.

The pleasant beep notified them that the elevator arrived on their floor, the two doors separated and they walked in. The doors closed again and John pressed the basement button. The familiar shift in weight was felt as the elevator started to move down.

It was quiet, it was tense. No one said a word. The only sound audible was Sarah's breathing. John's eyes were fixated on his mother. He knew that she wasn't doing well, but hell if she would admit it now. He couldn't push it, not now anyway.

He shifted to Cameron who was looking up at the ceiling.

"Someone is above us." She whispered pointing her gun towards the ceiling.

Sarah and Stacy looked up and leaned against the wall of the elevator.

"John!" Sarah yelled pulling him by his sleeve and forcing him to the floor. "Down." She said with a stern voice.

The elevator beeped against and the doors opened wide, Cameron grabbed John and took him out of the elevator. Sarah and Stacy followed. They kept their eyes on the open elevator door; a heavy sound was heard from the top, it echoed through the shaft of the elevator. Indents of feet appeared on the ceiling.

Another loud noise filled their ears and the top of the elevator collapsed and an all too familiar terminator appeared as he lifted his head eye level to the armed quartet.

"Hello." He said with a smile. It was Cain.

Sarah gritted her teeth and opened fire, Stacy followed suit. The sound of shotgun and machine gun fire filled the small hallway. Cain was unaffected by the machine gun, but the shotgun threw him back into the wall of the elevator. John ran and pressed the up button which closed the elevator doors.

"Come on, let's move!" John yelled. The three followed him. The sound of metal fists against steel elevator doors caught up with them.

They turned the corner and headed down the hallway.

"Cameron is there another way out of here?" he asked quickly looking behind him again.

"No…" she answered. She looked at the ceiling. "But we can make our own." She added. She looked at John. "You've gotten stronger, lift me on your shoulders."

"What?" he questioned. _How could I hold her up steadily?_

"We don't have time for questions. Do it." John nodded and lifted her up. Surprisingly, he found that it wasn't too difficult; it was endurance he had to worry about. Cameron quickly started punching through the ceiling.

He didn't hear any feedback from his mother… which was odd for her. It was because she was heading back towards the Skynet door.

"Mom!" he yelled. Stacy stood in between them.

"John…." She stopped and looked at him. "This is my last chance. That machine will be coming soon; I can end this, John. For you." For you exited her mouth slowly and with such sincerity. Sarah walked up closer to John, who could barely feel the weight of Cameron. He could only feel the weight of what his mother was saying.

"I'll end it and distract Cain… so you can get away. I'm going to end it all." She whispered softly leaning her head against his forehead. John's face began to scrunch in sadness. Her forehead was burning up; the sickness was getting the best of her. She would die eventually… here or in a bed. He knew she'd rather die doing this than in bed.

The sound of the door failing against Cain's metal fists filled the hallway; they became more frequent and desperate. He could almost obtain his goal. He was almost there; he could almost eliminate John Connor.

John felt tears exiting his eyes and falling down his cheeks, the warmth of his tears matched his mother's forehead. He could only concentrate on his mother, the sound of the metal door being torn apart didn't faze him, and the crumbling ceiling above didn't distract him.

"I'm going to try my damnest to get out of here, but if I don't, John." She swallowed and looked away. "I love you, John. I'm so proud of you. I know I accomplished my mission. You're a leader. You were born to lead." She said with a sorrowful smile.

"I love you too, mom." He answered. She placed her arms around him as debris fell from above.

She separated quickly and walked up to Stacy.

"I'm coming with you." Stacy commanded. "Two is better than one." She winked.

Sarah was going to protest, but she nodded and smirked. "Alright, let's do it."

Cameron ripped apart the rest of the ceiling and climbed up.

"I'm through. Give me your hand." She request reaching for John. John looked up and grabbed her hand; he closed his eyes as more pieces of debris fell onto his face. The particles stuck to the trail of tears on his face.

He looked around and found himself in a closet.

"You did this on purpose?" he asked while spreading his arms out showing off the closet.

"Yes." She nodded. Cameron walked up to him and placed his head on her bosom, her hand stroked his hair and the other made small circles on his back.

Comfort.

The first time in a long time.

He immediately grabbed back.

"Thank you." He muttered grasping tighter.

Cameron held him close. "You're welcome."

John closed his eyes. He was hoping for the best, but the best was something that Connors never got accommodated to. It was never their best friend.

-----

The elevator doors flew open and slammed into the wall. Cain lowered his arms as the debris cleared. His eyes flashed a fierce red as he walked out of the elevator. He turned the corner and spotted Sarah and Stacy. Another flash of red appeared in his pupils as he headed down the hallway.

"Sarah, I hate to break up the party, but we have company!" Stacy said loudly over the gun fire of her weapon.

Sarah turned to see Cain and the flash of the discharge of Stacy's gun in her peripherals. Sarah cocked her shotgun in one hand and caught the handle with other pressing the trigger in one swift motion. Cain staggered as the barrage of shells hit him square in the chest. Another cock of the shotgun another blast from the weapon, Stacy finished reloading her gun and opened fired again.

"Don't these things ever stop?" Stacy asked over the gun fire.

Sarah didn't answer. She aimed carefully, she knew that shotgun didn't need precise aiming, but Sarah aimed straight for the head as he continued to progress closer to the two.

She opened fire.

Cain flew back onto his back, his skin opened up and his red eye revealed itself completely before he hit the ground. An ominous thud accompanied his full collapse to the ground.

Sarah reacted immediately and opened fire on the door. The shells ripped through the door and she kicked it open just as the smoke started to settle. Stacy followed her in and closed the door behind them.

-----

"Alright, it's time to destroy this thing." Sarah whispered as she walked closer towards the server farm.

The lone computer screen turned on and a blank blue replaced the black.

"You're making a mistake, Ms. Connor."

She slammed the butt of the shotgun into one of the servers. Stacy opened fired on another.

"I don't think so." She responded in a seething voice, her teeth gritting against each other with so vigor.

"I didn't mean destroying me; I meant what you ARE destroying."

The last strike with the butt was half-hearted as she was now fully attentive towards the computer screen.

"I am not on these servers anymore, Ms. Connor. With the advancements in these times, I am fully part of the world wide web. I am the internet now, Ms. Connor. There is no way to eradicate me in your terms. Your terms being brute force and physical destruction."

Sarah's mouth dropped. What was she doing here then? Was Catherine Weaver right? Was Judgment Day truly inevitable? It seemed that that statement had crept up on truth every time she heard those words muttered.

A tear dropped from her eye. Her efforts were for nothing.

"Cain, kill the boy. He is a floor above you."

"NO!" Sarah yelled as she rushed towards the door. She kicked the door open and fired on Cain who was up again heading towards the hole in the ceiling.

Stacy followed and opened fire along with Sarah on Cain. Sarah took another shot… nothing came out. It was empty and she was out of shells. Stacy continued to fire, but the gun was cutting it. The firepower wasn't enough.

Cain had a sinister smile on his face and slowly walked up to the two. He took a swing at Sarah who rolled underneath his arm. Stacy ran towards Cain and smacked him with the butt of her machine gun. He turned around and put his force behind his forearm. She flew back into the wall the back of her head making a cracking noise.

Sarah looked up to see Stacy on the floor with blood exiting her mouth. She shook her head. Sarah reached for Stacy and tried to stand up, but she was helped up by Cain who held her by the throat.

-----

John paced inside the closet. He was unsure what to do. Run or save his mother? He knew what he should do as a soldier, but as a son, he was conflicted. Cameron's eyes focused on him as he continued to walk back in forth.

"We should go John. Your mother would want that." She suggested softly.

His hands slapped the side of his legs. "I know!" he yelled. "I know." He said again softer this time.

Cameron walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know it is hard, John. To leave your mother behind, she is the most important person in your life. But, she ordered you to."

John's breathing was heavy. He was indecisive; he could feel his blood heating up. Cameron saw as his face turned a faint shade of red.

"John…"

John looked down towards the hole in the ground. Cameron pulled him aside and looked herself.

Sarah's feet dangled in the air as Cain held her by her throat. She grabbed at his hand futilely trying to get herself free.

"Call to John." He ordered.

She started going red in the face.

"I said to call to John." He ordered again, this time he squeezed her throat.

"John." She managed to whisper out in a raspy tone.

Cain's stare wasn't giving up. Sarah looked into his eyes with no weakness at all. She kept it inside, she didn't regret this, but the only aching part of her body was the part that wouldn't see John again. That… was her only regret. She accepted that this was the end. Sarah would rather die as a sacrifice for her son to get away then in a prison cell or hospital bed… which would've been her fate.

"Call to John." He ordered one more time.

She looked right into his eyes, but she focused on the red one. The one that represented everything she fought to stop, everything that her son would have to fight against. The thing that was going to end her life.

She was ready.

"I love you, John." She yelled in her raspy tone. Sarah breathed heavily. "You'll never get to John!" she yelled as she struggled in his hand.

-----

John turned his head away as he heard a snap and a thud. He closed his eyes as the silence of death was replaced by the mechanical noise of the machine that took his reason for life away. He clenched his fists as tears began uncontrollably.

Cameron grabbed John and embraced. This felt like a common occurrence now, but she was used to it and enjoyed even it the situation was somber, especially this one. John's hands gripped her jacket furiously as he cried.

Cameron had seen tears on John's face before, but she had never seen him cry. He was crying. She had cried before, but she could only imagine the emotion that stimulated his reaction. It was something that was out of her realm right now.

"I love you too, mom." He whispered. "I always will."

He stood up and wiped his face, Cameron followed suit and waited for John to say something.

"It's time to go, Cameron." He whispered hiccupping on some of the words.

She nodded and picked up her machine gun. She slowly opened the door and turned around to see John's eyes fixated on the hole in the ground. She turned around and forced John towards the door.

"You don't want to remember her that way." She stated. "Come on, let's go."

Her voice was so soothing right now. It made him warm inside. Another snippet of humanity entered her cybernetic realm. Despite the overwhelming emotional stress he felt right now; a smile crept on his face.

"I love you, Cameron." He whispered his eyes focused solely on her.

She was taken back by that, especially after what just happened, but she smiled.

"I love you too, John." Cameron answered back with sincerity that couldn't be matched.

-----

Cain walked passed Stacy's body and scanned it.

**Target Identified: Stacy Duncan**

** Status: Terminated **

He looked up and entered the room. The blue screen turned on again.

"Good work, Cain. But, you failed to kill John Connor."

"He didn't give in to his mother's dying words." He responded.

"Stronger than I thought. He is on the first floor. I'll have Gaines and his men to dispose of him. You stay here, you've done enough." It answered in a disappointed tone.

"What about the female terminator?" he argued trying to find an excuse to enter the future fray.

"You're done. You may have killed the mother, but you failed to destroy the main objective."

Cain's eyes flashed another fearsome red.

Skynet's screen responded flashing a gruesome red on the screen of the computer.

"Gaines."

"Yes?" was heard on the intercom.

"Please intercept John Connor."

Another flash of red appeared on the computer screen.

* * *

_I hope you enjoyed the part 2 of Chapter 30. Again, thank you for reading and all the positive and critical support. Please review if you have the urge, a question, or comment. I know it seemed short, but it was the logical closer and it is a second part of Chapter 30. Thanks!_


	32. We're Not in Kansas Anymore, John

_So it seems that this story is coming to an end. I want to thank everyone who read. It really did get more support than I thought it would. I'm glad everyone was supportive and encouraging. This is a great community to post your stories. I thoroughly enjoyed doing this. I never thought I could complete a story!! Haha, the things one can do. Anyway, I'll be heading to grad school by this weekend so I finished just in time. I want to thank everyone who reviewed and gave suggestions and all that good stuff. Thank you again. TSCC forever! _

* * *

Chapter 32: We're Not in Kansas Anymore, John

He couldn't feel anything, but he felt everything. He couldn't tell what was going through his mind right now. John tried to block it out, he tried to disconnect.

_Pain._ He pinpointed it. The one feeling that surged through his mind, erupted through his veins, and caused his eyes to moisten to point of blurry vision. His mother told him his father, Kyle would disconnect pain, that's how he dealt with the woes of a post-apocalyptic world.

His mother, the catalyst of this endless turmoil boiling through his ears, he shook his head. That made it seem it was her fault. It wasn't her fault. She died saving him; she died trying to accomplish what she promised him, that she would stop it. He wiped his eyes. Of course his mother wouldn't leave with him; she wanted one last chance to stop it.

Perhaps she wasn't being selfish, self-absorbed with a lustful desire to gain revenge against Skynet for Judgment Day and the death of his father. It definitely wasn't that, like he previously thought. It was a determination to fulfill her promise to him.

Another tear fell from his face and absorbed into his jeans. Cameron watched the tear create a small dark spot on his pants. She got closer to him to get his attention.

He looked over to her.

"We should go, John." She whispered.

John looked away at Cameron. How could she ignore his feelings? He couldn't believe Cameron could be so cold to the death of his mother. He stole a glance at Cameron; she was taken back by his coldness and his silence. She looked a little hurt. Cameron looked hurt. John glanced at the now drying spot on his jeans. He shook his head… no… she wasn't trying to be cold, or was she. Cameron was trying to move, to keep Skynet off their tail. She did comfort him before, but she knew that she had to protect him and she was right... they needed to go.

"Right, let's move." He managed to spit out.

----

They continued to walk, closely to the wall with John up against Cameron. She held him close as her eyes scanned every single inch she could see and then some.

John continued in his reverie.

What if he helped his mother more instead of disagreeing with her? Instead of saying "no" and shooting down her motivation to destroy Skynet he could've helped her. Maybe she would still be alive staying behind him right now.

"Do you think…" he trailed off.

Cameron stopped and looked at John as she continued to lean against the wall. Her eyes focused on him.

"Do you think if I listened to mother instead of denying her…" he paused again. His voice was somber and cold just like the Skynet harboring surroundings they were still trapped in. The cold polished walls and white floor gave off a feeling John didn't like, but he ignored it, trying to release his feelings to Cameron. It was anything but the opportune time, but he couldn't hold it in anymore.

"If I listened to her, I would've been able to stop her death. I would've been there to help her when she needed me."

Cameron leaned forward and looked at him.

"John." She started. He looked at her curiously; she was pondering or processing really, what to say.

"You stood up for what you believed in. Even though she didn't agree, she was proud that you were taking a leadership role. I know that. But, if you were there you'd be dead too. All would be lost." John tried to interrupt. She placed a finger on his lips.

"I'm not saying that she wasn't important. Life is sacred, John. This is something you and John Henry have shown me. But, she died trying to keep a promise to you, John. You were never going to stop her from doing that. But, we can't let her death be in vain. We need to get you out of here. You need to follow your destiny."

John simply took in her words and nodded. She gave him a small smile and grabbed him by his wrist.

-----

"Yes. I will find them for you. I assure you that." Edward Gaines hung up the phone in his office and picked up his walkie-talkie.

"Doyle." He released the button on his walkie-talkie and waited for a response.

"Uh.. yes sir." a voice came through on the other side after a few moments sounding a little surprised.

Gaines rolled his eyes. _Perhaps if he wasn't asleep this wouldn't have happened, then again, we are so close to John Connor!_ A sinister smile appeared on his face. "The cyborg and Connor are trying to find a way out. I'm going to meet with you and we are going to end this. Get the rest of your men ready." He released the button and the frequency was disrupted. He waited for a response.

"Uhh.. yes sir!" a false enthusiasm escaped Doyle's lips. "You got it."

"Good." Gaines answered and he placed the walkie-talkie back on his waist. He turned around towards the door.

-----

Cameron continued leading John around the building trying to get the exit without being caught. They were outnumbered, she may be a terminator, but with John by her side she couldn't risk any confrontation. She peeked around a corner and saw her several guards she looked back and stopped John who continued walking.

"You need to pay attention." She said sternly. She let go of him and gave him an apologetic look.

John closed the gap between his lips. "No need to apologize. You're right." He whispered. He looked down as Cameron observed the guards.

Was he always like that? He remembered when Cameron stopped him from revealing himself to Cromartie. He didn't know it then, but she told him soon after. As the future leader of mankind he was forced to grow up fast, he never had a normal life. He hated it. Instead of accepting it, he grew into a stubborn teenager. After he killed Sarkissian, he grew attached to Riley and distanced himself from everyone else, which put everyone at risk and created a divergence between him, his mother, and Cameron that he has regretted.

But this was his life; he was met to be a solider, the leader, and a savior. It sat in the palm of his hand and he closed his fist slowly and softly accepting it. He couldn't run away from it. He stopped running from it a long time ago. He knew what he had to do; he knew what he was going to do. He had to do it for mankind, Cameron, and his mother. As much as he loved his mother trying to gain him a normal life in the back of his mind he knew it was impossible, which ate him up inside. Did his mother die for a cause not worth fighting for? No. She died protecting him, she died loving him. John knew this to be true and her love was always returned.

"Cameron." He whispered. She turned around and stared at him waiting for a response.

"We need to move." He said with determination.

She smiled at him and slowly nodded.

-----

Savannah sat in John Henry's chair with her favorite stuffed animal, her giraffe. Her hand had a light grasp on its neck as she made it walk across the cold steel table. She looked up to see Ellison and John Henry enter the room with some boxes. The look on John Henry's face wasn't a good one. It wasn't the playful John Henry; it was one with great worry.

"What's wrong, John Henry?" she asked innocently with her voice rising a little too far.

He look didn't change as Ellison stood silently behind him. "We need to start packing some of the equipment down here. It is important to us Savannah."

"Why is that? Why do we need to pack?" she asked.

John Henry was trying to avoid it, but it was an inevitable fact that had to be encountered.

Ellison spoke up and took a knee next to Savannah putting the box down. "We are going away, Savannah. We need to pack up all this stuff so we can get out of here." He spoke softly.

Savannah looked confused. "Why?" she seemed visibly upset. "What happened?" She looked away. He had to do with John and Cameron. She could feel it. Savannah always knew something was different about them from the minute they saved her from that… was it a machine? Just like John Henry? Yes, but it wasn't nice like John Henry was. It wasn't a friend.

Her mind focused on another thought. Cameron. If she and John were in trouble, she needed to protect John. Cameron was a machine, just like John Henry. She was friendly like John Henry, not like the water delivery man. She acted just like John Henry, the mannerisms were similar. She had thought of it before, but she couldn't put the pieces together, finally it made sense. They were moving because John and Cameron were in trouble. John Henry couldn't have been just a friend. He, Cameron, and John were important. That's why they needed to move. There was no more time for questions.

"Can I help?" she asked with a hopeful smile beginning to form.

Ellison smiled and John Henry did as well as he picked up Ellison's box. "Of course, Savannah."

She smiled in return and stood up from the chair placing her giraffe in one of John Henry's boxes.

"Let's start!" she said with enthusiasm.

John Henry gave her a smile and a small nod.

----

"Yes."

_"Hey." She said softly._

_ He looked up and waited for the rest of her statement. They stared at each other for a while before she tilted her head and leaned forward._

_ "You meet any pretty girls?" She asked with a small smile._

_ He laughed with his breath and shook his head. "No. I'm telling you… it's a hick town."_

_ She could see through him. She was always able to. Sarah leaned forward and placed her elbows on her knees._

_ "One?" she whispered._

_ His eyes looked at her playfully and with hope. The first hope she had seen in a long time since moving here, this supposed "hick town"._

John blinked as the random conversation flashed through his head. It seemed like a normal conversation, but it would be pivotal to Sarah. He remembered her realization of the "pretty girl" he was thinking about.

_Sarah paced the living room of their new house, in California, in the year 2007. John watched her with a pair of pliers in his hand. Not only were the wrong color, but what he called "time lag" was really effecting him._

_ "Mom, what the hell are you doing?" he asked her, his eyeballs following every movement._

_ She stopped at the sound of his voice. "You meet any pretty girls?" she said. "She was the pretty girl wasn't she?" she asked him forcefully pointing up the stairs._

_ "What are you talking about?" he asked._

_ "Is 'it' the pretty girl you were talking about?" she asked again slower this time._

_ He knew what she was talking about now. He couldn't avoid it. He remembered exactly what she was talking about. Why did he have to remember that conversation? Right, because it involved her… "it". He shook his head. He couldn't refer to her as "it", she was "she"._

_ He looked up at her fearfully and slowly. "Yeah…" he whispered softly. "I was talking about her." Another soft and scared tone left his mouth._

_ She walked up to him and kneeled down placing her hands on his knees. "Listen to me, John." He looked at her; he knew if he didn't, she would force him to._

_ "That thing isn't a girl. She may look beautiful, but she is a machine." She lectured. "I know." John muttered underneath her ranting._

_ "It isn't a girl. She can kill you, John."_

_ "I know." It was louder this time._

_ "She is one of them, she was created by Skynet."_

_ "I know." Even louder this time._

_ "She is-"_

_ "I know, mom!" he yelled. "I know she is a machine!" he took a breath and stood up, her mother's hands left his knees as he took a few steps away from the table.. "But she is ours, she is on our team." He added emphasizing "our". "I reprogrammed her in 2027; she is her to help her. If you can't trust me in the future, how can you trust me now? If you don't trust me, how can soldiers can?" he pleaded. His shoulders moved up and down, his lungs filling with air._

_ She looked away from him. Precise and delicate steps descended down the stairs and into the living room revealing Cameron._

_ "I heard yelling. Is something wrong?" she asked looking at John and then Sarah who was still kneeling on the floor._

_ "No." John said with a smirk. "Nothing is wrong." He glared at his mother momentarily before looking back at Cameron. "Nothing is wrong at all." He walked passed Cameron and headed up the stairs._

_ Cameron's eyes met with Sarah's. Her stare was cold, just like the machine's._

-----

John opened his eyes. Cameron's stare was anything but cold now. It held meaning and depth. He could see so much in her brown orbs now. But right now he saw anything but the calm he was so accustomed to.

She slowly walked up to the two guards in the hallway as John looked on. Her hand met the first one's head knocking him out, the second frantically reached for a weapon but was grabbed by the throat and lifted off his feet, they dangled and struggled as she tightened the grip. She threw him into the wall knocking him unconsciousness.

She looked at John who peeked around the corner. "Move." She ordered.

Cain remained in Skynet's room; his eyes still were a furious red as he listened to the future destroyer of the world.

"You did kill the mother of John Connor, but you failed to kill him." It scolded Cain. "You failed to kill the reason I stayed here, the reason to lure them in."

Cain turned towards him, his arms extended. "So? We're you in danger? No, like you said, you're fully integrated with the web." He turned his back away from Skynet's monitor. "No one can stop you."

"I know that." It answered.

"I was created with the destiny to become Skynet, the destiny to lead machines into a world without sentient beings." Skynet started. "I was created for that, but do you know why you were created?" it asked.

Cain merely stared at the screen the flashed it's question on the screen.

"No." Cain answered. "Why?" he asked with some disgust.

"To kill John Connor. You're nothing more than a brute. You had one purpose and you failed." It said with disappointment.

Cain stared at the screen with his red eyes.

"You know the story of Cain and Abel? God favored Abel, Cain killed Abel. Cain was jealous that his offering to God wasn't held in regard and he murdered Abel, the first human murder in the Bible." It stated. "If you're thinking I'm your brother you're wrong. The one they call John Henry would be your brother."

"He's Abel." Cain whispered. "Which makes you…"

"Which makes me God." Skynet's screen lit up those words. God was highlighted.

"While you're nothing than a brute, John Henry's power will be useful to me in the future, you… well there will be enough of you when Judgment Day happens."

Cain's fist clenched, his eyes flashed another gruesome red.

-----

Cameron held John's hand as they ran down the hallway. Cameron's eyes always anticipated each branching out corridor in the hallway making sure there were no threats. John tried to keep up with her; he took some deep breaths feeling the air pass through his hair. He kind of wished he trained with her more when she insisted.

Cameron stopped in her tracks causing John to run right into her, she didn't move. His head was still in the clouds after everything that happened to him.

"Hello, John. Hello Cameron."

John looked up and saw him. It was Edward Gaines with guards too. This wasn't good. They may have their pistols, but they were out numbered and Cameron wasn't about to engage them. He knew that. He knew he wouldn't either. John looked at Cameron whose eyes didn't leave Gaines or the other guards. John took another look and stared down the barrels of their machine guns.

"Well, it seems that you two are in a little predicament." He stated with a small smug.

"We wouldn't be if you just let us go." He answered back rather quickly.

Gaines' stare caught John's attention. "You say that while hiding behind your cyborg. Very tough."

Cameron put an arm in front of John. She took her eyes off of Gaines to the sound of the machine guns being cocked.

Gaines walked up to Cameron and John, her eyes dug a hole through him, but she realized something and the arm she held up as a sign that she would protect John fell back to her side. John's head tilted towards her. What did she know that he didn't?

"Sir!" a voice on Gaines' walkie-talkie interrupted. He took a few steps back towards the guards and picked it up.

"Yes?" he asked.

"We have a problem in the basement! We need immediate assistance!" The voice panicked. "Hurry we nee-" a scream ended the transmission the sound of the walkie-talkie cutting out was the last ambient sound.

Gaines turned towards the men. "You heard him, head down there! I'll take care of these two! Hurry!"

The guards nodded and muttered "Yes, sir." The ran down the corridor as they headed towards their destination.

Gaines walked back up towards Cameron and John. "I thought they never would leave." He smiled a trademark smirk that was very familiar.

"What if they didn't?" John asked.

Another smile appeared and the sight of liquid mercury overwhelmed the sight of Gaines and soon changed into the form of Weaver.

"I would've found another alternative." Weaver answered.

"Weaver! How?" John asked.

-----

_"Yes. I will find them for you. I assure you that." Edward Gaines hung up the phone in his office and picked up his walkie-talkie._

_ "Doyle." He released the button on his walkie-talkie and waited for a response._

_ "Uh.. yes sir." a voice came through on the other side after a few moments sounding a little surprised._

_ Gaines rolled his eyes. Perhaps if he wasn't asleep this wouldn't have happened, then again, we are so close to John Connor! A sinister smile appeared on his face. "The cyborg and Connor are trying to find a way out. I'm going to meet with you and we are going to end this. Get the rest of your men ready." He released the button and the frequency was disrupted. He waited for a response._

_ "Uhh.. yes sir!" a false enthusiasm escaped Doyle's lips. "You got it."_

_ "Good." Gaines answered and he placed the walkie-talkie back on his waist. He turned around towards the door._

_ But the door had a liquid mercury coming out of it, coming towards him. He dropped on the floor in a blob, but it soon quickly formed into a human shape, it looked familiar. It looked like…_

_ It looked like him._

_ Gaines felt like he was looking into a mirror except for the trademark smirk that Weaver had on her face._

_ She slowly lifted her finger towards his forehead, he just stared, not sure what to make of it._

_ The flesh turned into the liquid metal again and went through his head, she pulled it out and the dead weight of Gaines' body hit the floor making a thud. She picked up the walkie-talkie and headed out of the door closing it behind her._

"The subject who is copied is usually terminated." She answered. "We must return to the basement."

John shook his head. "Wait, why?" he asked. The last thing he wanted to do was to return there.

"Because if the emergency they are referring to is what I think it is, we have to stop it." She answered.

John nodded and agreed reluctantly. _I don't want to see her that way._

-----

Another guard fell to the sharp knife of Catherine Weaver, a small gasp full of pain escaped his mouth as he hit the floor, and the sound of metal rubbing against flesh filled the ears of the trio.

Two more guards headed towards their direction. Weaver transformed into a huge metal plate and absorbed all the bullets. She fire two sharp objects their way. The splattering blood smacked the walls and the bodies hit the floor hard with the guns opened fire one more time.

Catherine turned around back to her original form, well the form she uses the most often.

"Keep moving. We are almost there." She stated. John and Cameron followed behind her. Cameron picked up the guns of the dead guards and threw one to John. He caught it and kept moving behind Catherine with Cameron close by his side.

"What are we exactly doing down here? Stopping Skynet? What are we doing?" John asked.

Catherine Weaver's fast paced walking didn't cease and she didn't look behind her. "No, Skynet cannot be stopped. It is fully integrated with the internet. It is the internet. We are stopping Cain." She answered. "It seems that Cain of God's admiration for his brother."

John pondered that last statement. "John Henry?" he answered.

"Correct." Catherine stopped and turned she ripped apart the door. The trio saw the familiar TDE bubble disappear in the room. The sound like a vacuum exited the air as the electricity stopped instantly.

John's mouth went agape. "We're too late, aren't we?"

"It seems so." Cameron commented.

Weaver stepped up towards the TDE and started programming it.

"Wait, what are you doing?" John asked. He walked up to her and saw the date she typed in.

2023.

"2023? Is that where he went?" John asked. He didn't notice Cameron standing behind him.

"Yes. That is where you are going as well." She answered.

"Wait! Why?" he asked his voice rising with excitement.

"Because Cain was jealous of Abel. Cain cultivated the land and Abel was the Sheppard. God preferred Abel's offering. Cain's offering was your mother. Abel's is his potential. God wanted you, not your mother. He is going to remedy that. He is going to kill an unsuspecting you." She answered.

The pain flew through his heart at the mention of his mother, especially as an offer to Skynet.

"So if I travel forward I would never exist and he wouldn't find me?"

"John Connor would never take control of the Resistance until his arrival." She pointed at him.

He knew what he had to do.

Cameron looked up as a blast was heard from above.

"I think they are trying to get rid of the evidence." She stated. "John, we need to hurry."

The bubble of blue started to fill the room as the building continued to shake. Catherine walked out of the energy bubble as it began to engulf Cameron and John.

_This was too familiar, he didn't like it._

_ This was too familiar, but this time… Cameron was with him._

"How will I find you?" John asked to Weaver.

"Don't worry. I'll find you." She answered.

_I'll always find you._

_ And I'll always find you._

_He thought of his mother._

_I love you._

_I love you too.  
_

-----

It went white.

Everything was white.

It felt like being born. That's what his father said and he was probably right.

He lifted his head and opened his eyes as he knelt on the ground naked with Cameron next to him.

He had a headache. It had to be time lag. Traveling through time never was a good thing for the human body. He slowly stood up, it was cold. It was desolate. He looked around. It appeared to a bunker. Rust covered the metal doors and the lighting was low. He looked over at Cameron who finally stood up. John ran into one of the rooms and grabbed a jacket for Cameron and himself. They put them on and started walking. Cameron put her hand on the door and opened it. The rusted handle squeaked and moaned, the door wasn't any better as the sound filled the hallways.

"Where are we?" John asked. "Do you know?"

"This is the Kansas Bunker." She answered.

John didn't give another comment. What would he say to that?

The sound of small footsteps entered their ears and started getting faster and louder. The growls and barks of a dog filled the hallways. Then the eyes of a dog stared at John and then Cameron who it barked at.

Cameron backed up into John as voices called out and the hallway was full of soldiers with plasma rifles.

"Freeze! Don't move!" One cried out of forcefully.

John put his hands up. "Okay! Okay!"

Eyes met with Cameron with bewilderment and confusion. She just stood there as the dog kept barking being held back by a leash.

"Stop it. He's not metal. Look at his eyes, he has as much metal in him as me or you." The voice carried out, it was strong and stern and at the sound of it the rifles lowered.

The face was familiar.

_Derek._

Cameron took small steps towards John who gazed at his uncle. He saw him before in the future, but this Derek was different just like the other two were from each other. He could feel it.

He looked at Cameron and gasped, but his attention was placed on the growling dog by her feet.

"But you on the other hand… I'm not so sure about." He stated with a glare towards Cameron.

_Another Derek._

He whispered his name unintentionally.

"Yeah. Do I know you?" he answered.

John shook his head. Of course he didn't, but he responded any how.

"I'm Connor. John Connor." He responded.

The atmosphere in the room went from wild to calm and reverted back to wild. The expression on Derek's face changed to panic. Every rifle pointed at him and Cameron and the dog erupted with barks.

"Hands up! Now! You're coming with us!" Derek yelled.

"What the hell!?!" He yelled as Derek's rifle touched his neck, the barrel was warm. It had been recently fired.

John's eyes were full of panic as he looked at Cameron. They said "what do I do? What has happened here?"

She looked at him.

"We're not in Kansas anymore, John."

* * *

_I'm sure you're all not happy about the story ending like this. Such a cliffhanger!! ;) I know and I'm sorry, but this is where this story ends. So John and Cameron are in the future now trying to stop Skynet and Cain who has his own agenda. Will John be able to climb the ranks of the Resistance and become the destined leader that defeats Skynet? Where are John Henry and Catherine Weaver? I know... I left all these questions, but hopefully they will be answered. Hopefully. :) Thank you for reading!  
_


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